


oh baby, baby

by tendecibels



Series: but baby, i’m yours. (2park as parents au) [1]
Category: Wanna One (Band)
Genre: Background Relationships, Eunsang Chaeyoung and Woojin are the only siblings I trust, Fluff, Kihyun is the real mvp, M/M, Minor Kang Daniel/Park Jisoo | Jihyo, Minor Kim Dahyun/Minatozaki Sana, Minor Lee Donghyuck | Haechan/Mark Lee, Parents, Time Travel, give this clout pls, help I’m still sad wanna one disbanded, obv i had to make Jihyo and Daniel appear, their child is called hyunseok
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-13
Updated: 2019-10-13
Packaged: 2020-12-14 09:02:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 20,985
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21013208
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tendecibels/pseuds/tendecibels
Summary: When Jihoon’s offered to test a time machine, dragging his awkward roommate Woojin along with him, he doesn’t think it’ll actually work. He also doesn’t expect to meet a kid who recognises the both of them as his parents.





	oh baby, baby

**Author's Note:**

> hiii guys omg I’m literally so proud of this ahhh and like I know this will get no hits or kudos bc wanna one disbanded :( but enjoy anyways :)))

Woojin was a relatively decent roommate to have, and Jihoon honestly couldn’t ask for anything more. Woojin wasn’t an asshole, contrary to his cold outward demeanour, and he didn’t touch Jihoon’s food, thank fuck. Those were the two most important things about having a roommate in his humble opinion, for Jihoon had switched roommates countless times after finding his food half eaten or gone completely, because, yes, it was that serious in his eyes. 

Woojin also wasn’t the type to push the annoying agenda of befriending everybody in sight, and Jihoon really appreciated that, he was content with his small circle consisting of his four closest friends, and didn’t really want a forced friendship with a roommate he had nothing in common with. Nothing personal.

That’s not to say they weren’t painfully awkward at times, simply because they weren’t used to seeing each other past a simple good morning or sleep well, and neither of them really strived for a close friendship. Their conflicting schedules provided enough separate time to not feel the sting of the awkwardness, seeing as Jihoon was studying biomedical science, leaving him with a tightly packed schedule and towers of assignments. He doesn’t even remember the last time he had a full eight hours of sleep. 

Woojin, on the other hand, was on the opposite side of the spectrum. He took a course in dance, which was arguably considered an easier option and left a lot more free time in his timetable, but just from an outside perspective, Jihoon knew he took his course extremely serious. More often than not, Woojin was away, in an out of town, participating in competitions or taking one time classes at prestigious dance schools. 

Woojin was very good at what he did, and made sure people knew that. One of Jihoon’s friends, who also studied dance, Jeno, has an incredible infatuation with his roommate. He’d met Jeno after stumbling into the dance department one day, asking him for directions on how to find his best friend, Guanlin who he’d find in the film. 

Jeno had awkwardly asked if he’d want to meet for coffee sometime, his eyes widening immediately after waving of any assumptions that this was a date, explaining that he’s new here and the more friends the merrier. Jihoon had just chucked quietly.

“He’s just so _good_, Jihoon.” Jeno was ranting about Woojin once again, at the cafe Jihoon had dragged him to along with Guanlin, to complete his final assignment of the week. Jihoon really hated studying alone, it made him feel swamped in work, even if he only had to do the bare minimum and his will to complete his work was always cut significantly shorter if he was studying by himself. That’s why he always takes every opportunity to abduct at least one of his friends whenever he had something to get done, just to hear the buzz of conversation around him. 

Jihoon hummed absentmindedly, “I’m sure he is, Jeno.” 

“You’re not even taking this seriously, you don’t understand how lucky you are to be roommates with him.” Jeno says indignantly, as if they haven’t had this exact conversation countless times in the past. 

Jihoon knew Woojin was a good dancer, he had seen him perform at the end of semester festival last year, and the image of him has been permanently etched into his, and many others’ brains. Woojin’s skills had gained him quite the following, and if Woojin wasn’t with his best friend Daehwi, he was surrounded by at least six other people. That’s part of the reason why he keeps a friendly distance from Woojin, as he knows that becoming friends with such a figure like him would result in some unwanted attention being shed his way. So he’s perfectly fine just being Woojin’s roommate, that he speaks to very rarely.

However, Jihoon knows it wouldn’t be fair to be halfway through the third year of consistently living with somebody, and not even know their birthdate. That’s what urges him to spontaneously invite Woojin along to the experimental sciences department, when they’re just idly lying on their beds on their phones, during a rare occasion when their free days coincide and they both have nothing to do.

“Woojin?” The other boy makes an affirmative sound to confirm that he’s listening.

“Wanna come test time machines with me on Friday?”

Woojin almost drops his phone on his face as his head snaps up to stare at Jihoon incredulously, “What?”

Just last week, Chungha, a student in one of the other sciences Jihoon wasn’t familiar with, had proposed the exact same question to Jihoon, explaining that there was an exclusive experimental sciences fair, and they needed volunteers to try out some of the machines that they’d been developing for well over two years, and well, what else did Jihoon have to to do on a Friday night?

However, Woojin was a different story. He was almost never home on weekends, instead he was at parties, in his realm among the sweaty dancing bodies and endless supplies of alcohol. Jihoon had caught Woojin at a couple times, and they’d danced together at a few parties, on the basis of being drunk off their asses, and also acquaintances. 

Jihoon explains himself before the silence drags on for too long, “It’s not in my area of science, but Chungha noona’s department are testing loads of experimental sciences and I kind of offered to test their time machines, so if you’re free you can come with?”

Woojin pauses, seemingly considering the offer, before speaking, “Sure, why not. I should be free.”

Jihoon freezes with an incredulous look on his face, before breaking out into a grin, “I have to say, I did not expect you to agree.”

Woojin’s grin mirrors his own, “I have to say, I didn’t expect to be offered to test time machines.”

They both give small, barely there chuckles, basking in the oddness if the entire situation, however just as quickly as it had been brought to life, the humorous atmosphere they had been shrouded in fizzles out into an awkward silence.

“Well, that’s cool.”

“Yeah.”

-

The days counting down until Friday pass quickly, Jihoon and Woojin not really speaking much to each other after their plans were set in stone. Jihoon attends his lectures and seminars like normal, almost forgetting about the weird bonding time he he has planned with Woojin in a couple days. It’s safe to say Jeno completely loses his shit when he finds out that Jihoon has made plans with Woojin.

“You’re going on a date with Park Woojin!” Jeno is all but screaming in the middle of the street, on the back to their dorms after catching a movie that Jihoon didn’t really pay much attention to. 

Jihoon looks at Jeno with judgement and confusion painting his features, he’d never go on a date with Woojin, nothing against him, but he doesn’t even know him properly, and from what he does know, they seem like complete different people. Jihoon has voiced this to Jeno countless times, but is always met with the foolish, age old saying, ‘opposites attract.’ 

“We’re going to test _time machines_. It’s hardly a date, they probably won’t even work anyways.” It seems like Jeno can’t even hear the true words Jihoon has been uttering, enthralled at the idea of becoming closer to Park Woojin. 

Jihoon fails to understand him. “I don’t get what the big deal is anyway. You literally share a dance class with him, why don’t you just go talk to him.” 

Jeno’s mouth falls open any Jihoon’s words, looking at him like he’s just sprouted another head, “I can’t just go _talk_ to him. But you can!” Jeno’s countenance lights up as he says his last sentence, skipping once again as he remembers Jihoon’s plans with Woojin.

Jihoon fights the urge to turn around and go back the way he came.

-

On Friday afternoon, after Jihoon’s two classes of the day have ended, he receives a quick text from Woojin, who questions where they’re going to meet.

Woojin  
Hey, just wanted to know if we’re going to meet at home and go from there?

Jihoon subconsciously breathes a sigh of relief at the all too formal text, a small part of him had though that Woojin was just going bail out on him last minute, decide that this wasn’t interesting anymore, and that he had better things to do with his Friday afternoon. With a small smile, Jihoon shoots a short text back, confirming that they would meet at home, and that he doesn’t need to bring anything.

Anxiously, Jihoon opens the door to their living space, finding Woojin sitting on their couch, scrolling through his phone. He was dressed particularly nice today, his blonde hair styled, but tousled in a way that looked natural. He wore a simple grey shirt with black jeans, paired with a denim jacket that Jihoon coincidentally also had. Upon entering, Woojin looks up and smiles at Jihoon, nodding when Jihoon tells him to wait while he freshens up. 

Jihoon simply changes his shirt to a more practical one, and brushes through his pink locks, which he impulsively dyed such a bright colour after a mental breakdown, due to piling schoolwork and failing relationships, with the help of Guanlin. 

He remembers walking back into their dorm with his freshly dyed hair and watching Woojin double take. (“Mental breakdown.” He said, before any questions were asked. Woojin just nodded empathetically.) 

Taking one last look in the mirror, he patted himself down, checking for his keys, wallet and phone. He enters the living room once again and finds Woojin still sat in the same position he was in when Jihoon first got back.

“Good to go?” Woojin queries, standing up slowly and dusting off his pants as he does so. Jihoon just shoots him a thumbs up, before opening the door and stepping outside.

Now, Jihoon is not blind or stupid. He knows he’s conventionally attractive, and he knows that Woojin is also, maybe even more so, conventionally attractive. He also knows that his pink hair draws him quite a lot of attention, and he also knows that Woojin is popular, which alike, draws quite a lot of attention, and they are not a common duo seen together.

Jihoon still doesn’t think the stares are warranted though, and he can tell Woojin is also uncomfortable as his gaze is fixed unnaturally forwards. Way to make an already awkward walk, even more awkward. Jihoon doesn’t know what to say to fill this silence, because it’s normally his friends who do that for him, and Woojin didn’t seem to be the talkative type either. Plus, the eyes constantly on them didn’t really help their case. 

“I knew I shouldn’t have dyed my hair pink.” Jihoon mutters dejectedly, mostly to himself, but still catches Woojin crack a smile. It makes him smile too.

When they reach Chungha’s department, they find her standing outside the doors, welcoming people in with a smile. They both greet her with similar beams, and Jihoon silently thanks Woojin for playing a blind eye when Chungha makes obvious eyes between Jihoon and Woojin, then throwing Jihoon a wink. He loves his noona to the moon and back, but sometimes she can be so _embarrassing_. 

Inside is filled with chatter, as students and professors alike converse about different science related topics. Five, alien-like machines stand in the room, with placards in front of the reading names Jihoon can’t even begin to make sense of. He catches Woojin’s expression in the corner of his eye, and can’t help but laugh, he leans in close to whisper, “I know I’m a science student, but I don’t know what the fuck’s going on either.” 

A couple of minutes pass, when a man calls for silence at the front of the hall, and that’s when Chungha silently enters and shuts the door behind her. Tranquility fills the room before the man begins to start speaking. The man has a friendly demeanour, and kind face which branches off into intricate lines of age and wisdom. 

His wisdom shines off of him in rays, and he instantly demands respect from anyone and everyone just by existing . He introduces himself as a professor, though neither Jihoon or Woojin have ever seen him before, and explains briefly about experimental and pseudosciences, and their link to philosophy, afterward calling his own students to the front. They range in age, from Jihoon’s age all the way to people similar in age to his mother. One thing they all have in common however, is the knowledge and intelligence that also radiates in diluted form off of them. Jihoon can instantly tell that the professor is a very good teacher.

Then he gets into the meat of things, and explains what the mysterious machines that everyone keeps staring at in the room do. First, he directs everybody to look towards the left of the room, where a steel stature lies, with rods of different shapes and sizes pointing towards it. Jihoon’s doesn’t want to lie, it looks kind of dangerous. The professor laughs, sensing the apprehension in the room, before calling all their worries, “This here, is our scariest looking machine and your fear is understandable, but this also could be a pioneer into the study of time travel." 

Jihoon hears some gasps travel through the room, most likely from people that didn’t know what they were walking into. He takes this time to sneak a glance at Woojin, who’s absolutely absorbed by the professor’s captivating words, and smiles slightly, at the fact that Woojin is enjoying this as much as he is. 

He directs his attention back to the professor, who’s now asking for the very first set of volunteers. All is silent for a moment, before two brave people raise their hands. They are then led to the front, where the professor explains the inner workings to them, “This machine, if all goes well, will transport you to the past, within the span of ten years. You cannot tap out if you travel to the past, please be aware of that, and you will live six months, your time, in the past before you are transported. In reality, for us, it should only be a couple minutes before you return. Would you still like to continue with the experiment?”

Both participants share a deciding look, silent questions flickering between them, before they both nod and agree. They are then given a contract to sign by one of the students, and are told to stand in the middle of the machine where a square lay painted out. Another student sits on a section of machines where a complicated board of buttons was placed. “If you knew each other in the time that you are both transported to, you may encounter each other, but please do your best to let life play out as it should, your actions could affect the future.” 

The two volunteers stood where they were directed, expressions of fear morphing into those of nervousness, Jihoon’s shitting himself from here, and can’t even fathom what they’re feeling as the actual test subjects. Jihoon begins to really consider pulling out last minute, and letting somebody else volunteer for the next machine. A countdown begins, that they all join, and when the chorus reaches one, a sequence of buttons and triggers are pushed and pulled, the two participants disappear into thin air after a moment of what seemed like electrocution. 

Gasps and murmurs then fill the room, as everyone revels in the shock of the machine actually doing its job. It’s now when Jihoon begins to get really nervous. The professor begins to speak once more, but Jihoon can’t get over his shock to process that he really _should_ be listening. He glances between Woojin, the professor, and the spot that the two participants once stood, and it seems like hours go by. 

Until, with a short buzz, the two appear back in the room, standing in the exact same place they were before. With a stutter, the girl asks, “How are you all still here?”

Bewildered looks cross their faces, as they grasp on to the reality that must have been so different to where they were. The two, who previously stood far apart and barely talked, brought together by chance, looked at each other and hugged tightly. No one knows what happened in their time, but the guy had tears rolling down his face and the girl looked relieved. Their embrace was powerful, and everyone around watched in silence as they pulled apart. After the shock wore off, they were dragged away to a separate room where Jihoon assumes they had to document their experiences. The room was truly alive now, people trying to make sense of what just happened, excitement thrumming in everyone’s bones.

He turned to Woojin, “Are you sure you still want to do this?”

Woojin startles as Jihoon speaks to him, clearly in another world, “Fuck it.” He says with a smile, “Let’s do it, we’ll come back anyways.”

With a whiz, the professor announces the next machine, which is topaz in color and sporting a very industrial look, which he says will transport users to the future. This time, when he asks for volunteers, countless hands are raised among his own, and Jihoon’s about to call it a day when he spots Chungha at the very back, pointing frantically at Jihoon and Woojin, not so subtlety mouthing ‘these two’ at the professor. When the professor catches Chungha’s eye and nods slightly, Jihoon regrets ever coming. 

“You two, at the back.” The professor can’t be talking to _him_, there are tens of people also with their hands raised, who are more willing than Jihoon is. He’s about to back out when he makes eye contact with Woojin, who whispers a _please_, then Chungha, who’s looking at him with so much expectation. Jihoon gives in. This is peer pressure, he calls, and still doesn’t think it’s very fair when he’s led to the front and the professor explains things to them too. He tells them almost the same thing that he told the first pair, with the exception that they can tap out as long as they can reach a university or science facility and say his name.

He also tells them that there is a possible chance that they will keep looping until the end of time, should the machine actually take them to the future though it is highly doubted. The professor explains that this machine only creates a visual snapshot of the future and shouldn’t actually transport you due to the high risks that come with it, seeing as, technically, if a person time travels to any point in the future, and returns, once their returned self reaches that point in time, they will go back once again, creating an endless time loop. However creating a visual snapshot enables participants to reach that time in the future once they return, and for nothing to change, allowing them to continue living onwards.

Jihoon and Woojin both sign a contract, accepting responsibility for any problems that may arise, barring health issues, one which Jihoon really doesn’t want to sign but does it anyway because Woojin said please once. Who is he becoming? They then take a seat on two very uncomfortable chairs, sharing nervous looks before the countdown starts.

_5._ Jihoon can’t believe he’s fucking doing this. _4._ What if ends up in some dystopian future? _3._ How did he let Chungha scheme him into doing this? _2._ Jihoon’s gonna fucking die. _1._ Jihoon shuts his eyes tight, and prepares for the worst to happen. He feels a slight sting of pain, before he’s out cold.

-

Jihoon smells the cleanliness of his sheets, and instantly knows something isn’t right. He opens his eyes to a large bedroom and the sound of birds tweeting. This isn’t Jihoon’s room, his is cramped, definitely not this spacious and his sheets aren’t white like these, and he normally jerks awake to the sound of Woojin getting ready. It’s when he turns over that he truly has a heart attack. 

His eyes widen in shock and he clamps a hand over his mouth, attempting to not wake the sleeping body next to him. Park Woojin is in his bed. He is sharing a bed with Park Woojin. The most obvious change that Jihoon spots in his roommate immediately is that his hair is stripped bare of its golden blonde color and is now an opaque black, reminiscent of the days the first met. His face is slightly aged, more mature but as content as usual. Though Woojin looks older, his skin definitely has not suffered the effects of aging, and Jihoon follows the path of his face all the way down to his lips. It’s then when Jihoon realises that he’s never been this close to Woojin, and it’s also what prompts him to leap out of bed. 

Jihoon feels foreign in his body, and walks around as lightly as possible to avoid waking Woojin up and having to deal with the awkwardness and confusion that comes with the incriminating position they’ve found themselves in. Jihoon pads his way towards a mirror, placed on top of a vanity parallel to the wall, and accidentally gasps out loud when he sees himself. His hair color has changed too, no longer a vibrant pink but a dark brown that he hasn’t seen on himself in a long time. Nor is his hair still wavy, but pin straight, and Jihoon last looked like this when he was seventeen. He too has also changed with time, and his features have grown, eyes deeper set and darker, and skin not as supple but just as pink as before. Then he wonders, _how old am I?_

He rushes back to the bed, and feels around for a phone, any phone, until his hands find purchase on a rectangular object. He instantly turns it and presses the on button, nearly fainting when he sees the date, but also the lock screen. 

It’s a picture he can barely stomach, one of him staring at the camera with a heavy blush painting his cheeks, _Woojin_ planting a kiss upon his left cheek. He’s only glad to see that his signature wink is still in action even ten years later. Jihoon plummets down onto the remarkably soft bed, wondering what has become of his life. It’s been ten years. Jihoon is _twenty nine_, and presumably in a relationship with Park Woojin. The Park Woojin he barely speaks to though they live together, the Park Woojin who’s birthday he doesn’t even know. He hears that same Park Woojin begin to stir behind him, and positively panics. 

“Jihoon?” 

Woojin even sounds different, older. What does Jihoon do? What does he say? That he thinks they’re dating? That he thinks they _live together_? Jihoon’s decided he’s not going to tell Woojin any of that unless he asks. Jihoon hopes he doesn’t.

“Why are we in the same bed?” 

Oh. 

“I think we’re in a relationship.” Jihoon whispers, not trusting his voice not to betray him if he speaks louder than that, like doing so would make this all the more real.

“Oh.” Woojin takes a deep breath, looking around at the room neither of them recognise with wide eyes, “Why do you look so different?”

Jihoon feels like crying, but he doesn’t even know why. He’s so overwhelmed and all he’s found out is their age and possible relationship status, “It’s been ten years, Woojin. We’re twenty nine.”

Woojin’s jaw physically unhinges and his mouth is left hanging open, “What the fuck?” He drags out the last syllable, looking at Jihoon with an expression mixed with horror and wonder, “It worked, Jihoon.”

“I know.” Jihoon doesn’t know if he means it in a good or bad way.

Jihoon decides to try the phone again, cringes inwardly when he sees the lock screen, but curses when he realises that he doesn’t know the passcode, but an idea springs to his mind after looking at the offending picture, “Hey, Woojin, when’s your birthday?” 

Woojin seems to have lied back down, and closed his eyes, keeping them shut when responding, “Second of November, why?”

Jihoon groans loudly when a iconic click sounds through the room signifying that the phone has been unlocked. He then feels around the bed some more, forcing Woojin to lift his head to reach under his pillow to grab the other phone. He turns it on to find a picture of a cute, animated bear staring straight back at him, he furrows his eyebrows at the odd choice, but uses the phone for the purpose he intended to.

“Oh no.” Jihoon says, making eye contact with Woojin, who has sat up now, “The passcode to my phone is your birthday, and the passcode to yours is mine.”

“Oh no.”

-

The pair decide, after staring in the mirror for a good fifteen minutes, getting used to their new faces, that the next best course of action would be to search the house they’ve found themselves in. They open door after door, but find nothing of particular interest, just the typical rooms in a house, and see no signs of any other humans, until they reach the other end of the hallway. 

Written in a crude, messy fashion, is a sign on a door, reading _Hyunseok’s room_, a badly attempted drawing of a brown bear next to the writing.

Slowly, filled with dread, Jihoon watches Woojin open the door, and feels nervous butterflies in his stomach when he sees his mouth fall open for the second time. Stepping aside from Woojin and into the room, Jihoon soon does the same. The room’s painted a dark blue, and various posters of cars and mermaids were stuck on the wall. In the center of the room however, was a small bed, painted blue too, with blue sheets, covering a young boy wearing blue pyjamas. Jihoon pushes Woojin’s hand away from the door handle, and shuts the door behind them. Outside the sleeping boy’s room, the pair begin to really freak out.

“Who is that?” Jihoon whisper shouts, running his hand through his dark locks.

Woojin scoffs, “How am I supposed to know?”

They continue to go back and forth, halting when they hear movement inside the room. Dragging Jihoon, Woojin runs down the stairs before the child can wake up, where they can continue their debate without risking it.

“Should we tap out?” Jihoon really really thinks they should go back, so they don’t have to deal with something as troublesome as being functioning adults, and hopes Woojin agrees.

“No.” Fuck Woojin, “We’re already here, plus there’s a child. We can’t just leave him.”

“Yes, we can!” Jihoon is getting frustrated and stressed, which is resulting in him being irrational, “It’s not our problem.”

“Jihoon, it is _our_ problem, this is gonna be us eventually, and we can’t just leave a random child here with no supervision.” Woojin leaves the _that might be mine or yours_ unsaid but it pierces the silence anyways, and Jihoon fucking hates that Woojin is being logical, saying things that make sense. 

None of this even makes any fucking sense anyway, they don’t know where they are, how their lives have turned out or what town they’re in. Just yesterday, Jihoon was dreading waking up after only getting two hours of sleep, but was dreading attending his classes even more. Jihoon is a _uni student_, what was he doing worrying about some kid?

Except he’s not just some kid, and Jihoon feels it in his bones, no matter how much he tries to deny it. Jihoon’s train of thought is cut short when he hears footsteps grow lourder behind him, and he follows Woojin’s gaze to make eye contact with the little boy who was sleeping soundly moments before. His expression is sleepy and confused, and his hair is sticking out in tufts in every direction. Jihoon wants to pull his own hair out.

“Dad, what’s wrong with appa?” 

Jihoon is going to pull his hair out. He blinks twice, three times, making sure he heard right. _Dad?_ _Appa?_. Jihoon feels unnaturally faint for the second time in forty minutes. 

The boy rubs the sleep out of his eyes, and yawns loudly, “Why are you fighting?”

He pouts, and looks up at Jihoon and Woojin cutely from his short height. The first thought that crosses Jihoon’s mind is that the kid has a striking resemblance to that of a bear, wide eyes and a button nose, accompanied by full cheeks and tan skin, it’s then, with a horrified expression, when Jihoon realises why Woojin’s lock screen was a bear because _of course_ Woojin would do something like that.

“Me?” Woojin raises a shaking hand to point at himself, questioning the young boy, “I’m Dad?”

The boy, _Hyunseok_, Jihoon assumes, squints his eyes at the two men, before breaking out into laughter, “Of course, you are! Don’t be so silly, Dad.” Hyunseok punches Woojin’s thigh playfully, still laughing to himself.

Jihoon, meanwhile, is losing his shit. From what he’s hearing, Jihoon and Woojin are parents, of the same kid. Impossible, they barely even know each other, except for seeing each other before bed and sometimes catching each other in the morning if their schedules weren’t so tight. 

Honestly, Jihoon couldn’t even tell you what Woojin’s favourite colour was. So how did they manage to get to parenting the same kid? Woojin seems to be able to sense Jihoon’s mental instability, and crouches down to the child’s level, “You can go watch some tv in the living room while me and Appa sort breakfast out, sound good?” 

Hyunseok’s eyes widen to a comical level, gasping, “Tv? In the morning? Really?”

Woojin smiles widely, almost believably in Jihoon’s eyes, shaking his head, “Just this once, don’t expect it too often.” 

Once the little boy runs off, yelling thank you and I love you’s to the pair, Woojin’s smile wears off. He looks just as confused as Jihoon feels.

They then find their way to the kitchen, passing pictures hung up in the house of Jihoon’s graduation and certificates with Woojin’s name signed all over, qualifying him in things he doesn’t even know the names of. There are pictures of Hyunseok as a baby, and pictures of him being held by Woojin and Jihoon, all three smiling happily. Family photos. Jihoon feels sick to his stomach. 

Woojin leans on the kitchen counter, which is rather nice, glistening white and marble, and spacious, nothing like the community kitchen back at the dorms. They must have really made a life for themselves. They can occasionally hear Hyunseok’s giggles penetrate through the thin walls as he watches tv. 

“We have a kid.” Woojin sighs, and runs his hand through his hair.

There’s so much they don’t know. They’re rarely around kids as it is, so now for a kid to be thrusted their direction, brings utter confusion upon their heads. The last time Jihoon had to take care of a child was when he was fourteen and took up baby sitting for some cash, and even then, it was only for a couple hours. He’s not prepared for this at all. Jihoon breathes and tries to think rationally, “We should sort something out for him to eat, keep him busy.” 

Woojin opens the fridge, and sighs for the nth time that day, opening it wider for Jihoon to sneak a glance. It was pretty much empty save for a carton of milk and leftover food, nothing they could create something lavish or filling with. Meaning they probably needed to go shopping for groceries.

Woojin shrugs, “Cereal will do. He’s a kid.” 

Jihoon busies himself with locating where the bowls are in this kitchen with endless drawers when a jingle stops him in his track. Woojin’s phone was ringing, a _“Bae Joohyun”_ next to countless hearts appearing on the screen.

It’s a fleeting and irrelevant thought ; Jihoon doesn’t know why but he can’t help but hope future Woojin wasn’t cheating on future him for a split second, because that would make things even more awkward, then Woojin’s answering it before Jihoon can even begin to joke about his intrusive thought. He puts the phone on speaker, and sets it on the table.

“Hello?”

He hears the woman on the other side breathe a sigh of relief, “Woojin honey, thank you so much for answering.” The woman sounds busy and out of breath, and Jihoon can faintly hear the voice of a man and a little girl in the background.

Woojin furrrows his eyebrows, “It’s no problem, what do you need?”

“Could you please give Eunbi a lift to school on your way with Hyunseok? Hoseok and I are very busy - Eunbi, dont touch that - today, we have a meeting and can’t take her or we’ll be late.”

School. Both of them had completely forgotten school was a thing that kids needed to attend, and that _their_ kid probably had a school he needed to go to as well. Now, they were tasked with taking another kid to school as well as their own, when they didn’t even know what city they were in. At least Woojin wasn’t cheating on him.

Woojin begins to sputter excuses, but Joohyun instantly cuts him off, “Please do this for your Joohyun noona, we really need your help today.” 

Jihoon has always been soft, so when Woojin covers the phone with his hand and asks Jihoon what to say, he tells him to say yes. He doesn’t want to put another family in a tough situation when theoretically, they could help out. Joohyun blows Woojin countless kisses through the phone, and tells him to tell Jihoon and Hyunseok that auntie Joohyun said hi. 

Now they have added stress, they have to figure out where this child lives, and figure out where their own child’s school is. Jihoon decides they might as well at least try make sense of their situation, “Go upstairs and get his uniform ready, and see if you can find out the name of his school, I’m going to get some information out of the kid.”

Once Jihoon hears Woojin clamber up the stairs, he steps into the living room quietly, calling the little boy’s name to get his attention, handing him his bowl of cereal, before crouching down in front of him. “Hyunseok, do you mind telling me when school starts and ends?”

Hyunseok’s eyebrows furrow much like Woojin’s do, and he walks to the dining room, Jihoon following and he silently kicks himself for noticing the comparison, “but you already know, Appa.”

Jihoon tries to smile convincingly, “I know, but I want to see if _you_ know.”

The boy instantly perks up, “I know, Appa! School starts at ten past nine, and it ends at three o’clock.”

Bullseye. Jihoon thanks the lord that kids could be so gullible, clapping as he pulls Hyunseok into a hug, “Well done, Hyunseokie.”

Back in the kitchen, staring at the clock, Jihoon realises they’re in trouble, it’s half eight in the morning, school starts in forty minutes and he doesn’t even know where it is or their method of transport. 

He walks to the front of the house, where the long panels of glass lie, and presses his face against the window that looks out onto the street, and if he turns at the right angle, he can see the corner of a car peeking out of the driveway. At least they have a car. 

He bounds upstairs, and back into the direction of Hyunseok’s room. He finds Woojin diligently hunting for an ironed polo shirt Hyunseok can wear, and sees a sweater with a logo already laid out, progress, now they know the name of the school. Woojin starts when he hears Jihoon’s voice, knocking a lamp over, but catching it before it makes contact with the floor, “School starts in forty minutes and we don’t know what we’re doing at all.” 

He apologises for giving Woojin such a fright, and he waves it off, explaining that he was already tense. Jihoon can fucking relate. “I searched up his school, it’s only a fifteen minute drive, assuming we have a car?” Jihoon nods, confirming that they do, in fact, have a car. Now, they have to find out where Joohyun and her family live. 

“Sorry to keep making you do things, but if you could ask Joohyun to text you their address that would be great, just say the car’s memory wiped or something.” Woojin smiles kindly, telling Jihoon that they’re in this together so they both have to put in work. Jihoon appreciates that. “Well, I’m gonna go get him ready.”

Woojin waves awkwardly at him. Jihoon’s glad to see that at least one thing hasn’t changed.

-

Getting Hyunseok ready was easier said than done. He had managed to put his uniform on without hassle, and allowed Jihoon to brush his hair without complaint, but as Jihoon would soon find out, the boy seemed to have some sort of phobia of brushing his teeth.

This wouldn’t be so inconvenient if it wasn’t extremely necessary, and if he didn’t start crying whenever Jihoon brought the toothbrush near. 

It had been near five minutes and Jihoon was already willing to give up, “Look, Hyunseok, you need to brush your teeth.” At his words, the child simply shook his head no, and proceeded to cry even more. Jihoon was at his wits end, how do parents do this on a daily basis?

His saviour comes in the form of Park Woojin, who bursts into the bathroom, announcing proudly that he has Joohyun’s address, but faltering when he reads the tension in the room, asking “what’s going on?”

“He won’t _listen_ to me, Woojin, I’ve been trying to get him to brush his teeth for a good five minutes now” Jihoon honestly deserves an award for everything that he’s doing, it’s not like he has to take care of this kid, or that he has to make sure he gets to school, but does so anyway, because he likes to think he’s a good person, and this is how he’s repaid. Calling it quits, Jihoon stands up and let’s Woojin deal with the problem. 

Crouching before him, Woojin ruffles the kid’s hair, sending him a disappointed look, “Why aren’t you listening, buddy? You know you make Appa stressed when you don’t listen to him, so be a good boy and brush your teeth.” 

Reluctantly, but surely, Hyunseok puts the toothbrush in the mouth, refusing to break eye contact with the men whilst sending dejected looks as if he’s being forced to do something terrible. Jihoon just watches the whole ordeal with an incredulous look on his face, as he watches Hyunseok comply with Woojin at his first request. That’s it, he decides. He’s never having kids.

(How terribly ironic.)

-

Silently thanking his mother for forcing to take driving lessons as soon as he was legal, they all bundle into the car, after turning the house upside down in search for the keys, eventually finding them hung up under a sign that read _keys_.

She just wouldn’t let it go, going on about how driving was an essential, practical skill but Jihoon didn’t see the point, seeing as he probably wouldn’t be able to afford a car anyways and he could always do it after getting his degree. 

Now, Jihoon feels gratitude for his mother’s nagging habits thinking about how stuck they would be had Jihoon not learnt to drive. Jihoon was honestly a little excited to meet this mysterious Bae Joohyun, who seemed very close to their future family, he thinks as he inputs their address - that Woojin had so helpfully acquired - into the cars navigation system. 

It was only a five minute drive, barely anything, explaining why Joohyun was so confused that they had managed to ‘forget’ how to get there, and they still had plenty of time to get to school. Looking at the address and street signs, Jihoon deduces that they live in _Incheon_. Incheon? With a house like that? Jihoon had assumed they lived on the outskirts of the country, but to be so deep in the city and own a house like that, Jihoon must have underestimated the life they actually made for themselves.

“Incheon, huh?” 

He watches Woojin recover from zoning out at his words, his elbow perched against the passenger window as he daydreams. Looking at him makes Jihoon come to the realisation that _this_ is the man Jihoon is going to have kids with. It just doesn’t make sense, how is this possible? 

In the overhead mirror, he spots the child in the back, absentmindedly staring out of the window at passing cars. He’s cute, Jihoon has to admit, but it doesn’t change the fact that they have to look after this kid for however long they stay here before they pull out, and Jihoon loses common sense for the nth time today.

“We really did something for ourselves.” Woojin says, and Jihoon is once again shocked by the overwhelming depth of it. He’s pulled out of his thoughts, however, when the system chirps a _you have arrived at your destination_ loudly. 

He pulls up in front of a row of beautiful apartments that look recently built, and if there’s one thing Jihoon knows, it’s that he’s not going to be the one going to their door. He has a hard enough time talking to people he knows, but someone who he’s apparently close with in the future but has no recollection of will no doubt send Jihoon straight to the grave. He voices this, and Woojin gives him a look before reluctantly climbing out of the car.

Jihoon and Hyunseok watch Woojin fumble around for a bit, glancing at his phone, before he finds the right building to enter. He hears the boy behind him softly utter a single word, “Appa.”

Jihoon takes a couple seconds to respond, barely registering that he’s _Appa_. He shudders, before answering. The boy looks conflicted, fidgeting in his seat and playing with his fingers before asking, “Are you and dad having an argument?” He whispers the last word with a solemn look on his face, almost as if he’s telling a secret and can’t be caught.

Shaking his head softly with a smile, Jihoon registers that Hyunseok is just a kid, with a heavy heart. Whilst Jihoon and Woojin are just finding out now, in Hyunseok’s eyes, they’ve been this boy’s parents as long as he can remember and Jihoon doesn’t want to put any doubts in his head, “Dad and I are fine, something just really confused us this morning. It’s nothing to worry your little head about, bear.” 

That’s new, the nickname just spilled out without Jihoon even meaning to, without him even registering it, but the small smile that graces Hyunseok’s face makes it worth it. It’s then when he sees Woojin re-emerge from the complex, but this time with three other people. The couple seem to be in a rush, and catch a quick glance of Jihoon in the car with Hyunseok and throw a small wave; Jihoon waves back, though he’s so shocked he could explode.

Jihoon would recognise that face anywhere. Long black hair, and eyes that still sparkle. She was wearing a long, brown trench coat and a pair of glasses were perched on her face. Flashes of memory cut across Jihoon’s though like blades of pretty laughter. It was unmistakably Irene. 

Jihoon can’t wrap his head around the fact that Bae Joohyun from Woojin’s contacts is _Irene_ from the music performance department, and to add more surprise to the mix, she’s getting in a car with Hoseok, their Hoseok. 

Jihoon has heard countless stories from Woojin during their rare conversations about how whipped Hoseok was for Irene. Hoseok was a few years older than Woojin himself, and Jihoon had heard that he held the title of best dancer on campus. Irene had always been his unobtainable crush, and the push and pull game they always seemed to play became the national drama for people that cared enough. Now, Hoseok and Irene are together and have a kid. Assumably. What the fuck.

Woojin is walking beside a young girl, who the spitting image of both Joohyun and Hoseok, her dad’s charming smile merged with Irene’s grace and beauty. What a lucky selection of genes, Jihoon thinks. 

Eunbi looks about the same age as Hyunseok, and Jihoon can see her mouth moving endlessly and Woojin makes expressions of wonder as she talks that make her laugh. Woojin is good with kids, Jihoon notices, and it’s rather unexpected. 

A lot of things about Woojin are unexpected, Jihoon’s come to notice, his cold outward appearance fizzling into somebody completely different. When the pair get back to the car, Jihoon watches the kids’ excited interactions, talking quickly about school. Thank god, at least Hyunseok’s still smiling, Jihoon had begun to think that they had really upset him.

“Irene and Hoseok.” He mouths incredulously, pointing towards the building they came from. Jihoon is somewhat proud of Hoseok though, after years of pining, managing to create a life with the girl of his dreams. Kudos to him.

Woojin’s eyes are wide, speechless as he shakes his head in astonishment, “I know.” He mouths back.

They reach the school building with five minutes to spare, and bid the two kids goodbye. Jihoon’s opening the car door, and has one foot angling inside the car before both of them are stopped dead by Hyunseok’s pout, seemingly uncaring of the countless kids of varying ages all chattering, making their way into school with grins on their faces, and Eunbi waits patiently whilst Hyunseok whines, “You guys are being really weird, you always kiss me goodbye.”

Jihoon and Woojin make serious eye contact above Hyunseok’s head, but Jihoon doesn’t even get enough time to stress out before Woojin is placing a kiss on Hyunseok’s left cheek, wishing him a good day. Jihoon blinks, realising that he has no choice but to do the same.

-

Now that they’re alone in the car, without Hyunseok and Eunbi’s constant chatter providing a break from the silence, Jihoon and Woojin realise that they are still so painfully awkward. Just a day ago, they saw no reason to talk and barely interacted, and now, they were parenting a kid together. Even with this revelation, they still had very little to talk about.

The air in the car was stifling, and Woojin couldn’t figure out how to man the radio for the life of him so the silence proved to become even more deafening. Jihoon looked little else than straight ahead at the road as he drove back the way they came, but looks at Woojin slightly when he speaks, “Hey, we just passed a food store and we might as well get what we need to.”

Instantly, the memory of their bare fridge comes back to the forefront of Jihoon’s mind, and he agrees, deciding that it would be a good idea to buy groceries so they could rule out the problem of food out of their lengthy list. Making a swift U-turn, Jihoon takes them back in the direction of the store.

It’s when they’re inside that Jihoon realises that they both have no clue what to buy, because they’re uni students who live of ramen supplies sufficient for a single person and now they have to keep a whole child in mind. 

They decide to tackle the situation meal by meal, buying food that can be made into various different dishes, and necessities. Overall, Jihoon thinks this trip is going quite well, their shopping cart slowly filling with food, until he witnesses Woojin place two bottles of wine into their cart. “Woojin,” Jihoon pinches the bridge of his nose, taking a deep breath, “in case you still haven’t noticed, we aren’t nineteen anymore! we have to spend wisely now that we have a kid.”

Woojin looks up quickly at the last few words, like a deer caught in light, the fact that they have a child still unsettled in their minds, before relaxing, holding up the two bottles, “We’re practically rich, have you seen the car we drive? And I think we’re both gonna need these.”

Jihoon doesn’t have time to retort because a woman, who seems close to their new ages waves at them to get their attention. Panicking, because he doesn’t know this woman, Jihoon’s heart begins to quicken in pace as she nears them. She’s rather short, with a high pitched voice, long brown hair curled lightly, “Jihoon, Woojin! It’s been so long.” 

They awkwardly fumble around for responses, but don’t even have to worry, as the woman cuts them off anyways, paying no mind to their suspicious behaviour, “How’s Hyunseok doing? I haven’t seen him in so long either, I just can’t believe he’s already six!” At least now they know the age of their child. They bullshit answers about Hyunseok’s grades in school and how he’s getting along at home, sighing in relief when the woman believes them and looks positively delighted at their responses. When she leaves them be, explaining that she’s on a tight schedule, the visibly relax after being tense for so long, making an agreement that they should go check out.

When they’re carrying the bags full of food back to the car, Woojin says, “it’s been so long since I wasn’t broke.” And Jihoon snorts, he can definitely relate. 

-

It got awkward. Again.

They were sitting on the couch, in silence, watching a show neither of them were particularly interested in. It’s this silence that gave Jihoon the time to think though. Where were they going with this, how were they going to keep themselves stable. 

They had only fixed one piece of the puzzle on the board by sorting out this week’s supply of food, and they had countless pieces left that they couldn’t even recognise as part of the same puzzle. What about money? Jobs? They needed to stay financially stable whilst in the future, but couldn’t fathom turning up to a workplace that they couldn’t tell you the tiniest bit about. 

Jihoon stands up with uncertainty, making brief eye contact when Woojin looks up at him curiously, his attention easily pulled away from the lacklustre tv show. 

“We need to find out where we work. We might be able to find something in our room.” The “our” leaves a weird taste in Jihoon’s mouth, and he sees Woojin fidget a little at his word choice. After that brief moment of discomfort, Woojin gets up and stands beside Jihoon, agreeing to his idea.

Whilst making their way to the place this whole mess started in, Jihoon can’t help but notice that this place is so unapologetically him. From the pink ornaments strung up in various places throughout the house, to the two tone theme their whole house sports. There’s no doubt that future Jihoon was involved in this.

Jihoon sees the master bedroom in a very different light, now knowing that this is where they sleep every night, knowing that they have a _kid_, knowing that they’ve probably committed despicable acts on this very bed. 

Woojin wastes no time however, walking a determined path towards the closet on the side he woke on, pulling the door open with a loud clatter. He then begins to sort through the clothes, looking for something, anything. Jihoon realises that he should probably be doing the same, instead of standing in the middle of the room watching Woojin. 

Upon opening what he assumes is his closet, it’s not hard to miss the plethora of white lab coats stacked inside. He pulls one out with a tentative hand, and feels no surprise when his name is printed on two of them. Looking to his left, he turns over the lanyard he spotted earlier this morning on the dresser, and sees his name yet again, however with the words biomedical scientist and the name of a lab specified underneath.

Jihoon breathes a slight sigh of relief, he’d have no idea what to do if he’d decided to completely switch life paths, and is immensely grateful that he’ll at least somewhat know what he’s doing when he eventually has to work.

He also manages to find his work rota on a laptop he located lying underneath their bed, (cringing slightly when the passcode turns out to be Woojin’s birthday again), and also manages to locate his place of work by searching up the name he’d found on the lanyard. Jihoon hums to himself, he’s been pretty efficient, if he does say so himself. His happiness is short lived however, when he realises that he starts work _tomorrow_.

Turning from his position perched on the side of the bed, he relays his information to Woojin, who is currently searching shelves and drawers for any information they could use to piece their new lives together. Earlier, he had found a stack of cards in Hyunseok’s room, which he had gone to search through, all reading various happy birthday messages. Jihoon watched Woojin smile to himself as he read through the cards, “Little man’s birthday just passed a few weeks ago.” 

Woojin’s expression then turned guilty, as if he had something to say, but just couldn’t bring himself to do so. Jihoon urged him with a ‘what’ and Woojin made grave eye contact with him, bringing Jihoon’s nerves to an all time high, “You were kind of sappy, Jihoon.”

Jihoon jumped from the bed, twisting to see what exactly Woojin was so fascinated by, and groaned inwardly when he read the messages he had apparently written, “Put them away, Woojin.” He dragged out each word, covering his face with one hand while the other attempted to confiscate them from Woojin’s offending grasp. 

This prompted him to laugh out loud for the first time since waking up, and hold them high above Jihoon’s head. Theoretically, Jihoon should have been able to reach the cards, seeing as they were nearing the same height, but Woojin’s back was bent in such an inexplicable manner that Jihoon couldn’t twist around. He eventually gave up and slumped back down onto the bed, sulking. 

Now, Jihoon was listening to Woojin explain that he apparently works at some sort of dance academy, putting extreme emphasis on the specific one. Jihoon guesses it must be either extremely prestigious, or a dream job in Woojin’s eyes. He’s in the middle of holding laughter in whilst Woojin talks way too quickly about exactly what type of dance they do and how he already knows where it is, how dare Jihoon offer to look it up, when Jihoon’s phone rings this time. 

** _Woojinie’s Lovely Mother is calling_ **

“It’s your mom?” Jihoon rasps, not understanding how he’s supposed to have a conversation with his roommate’s mom, when he barely knows Woojin all that well in the first place. Hurriedly, Jihoon passes the phone towards Woojin, but he declines, reasoning that his mom was calling Jihoon, not him. Putting the call on speaker, Jihoon flips Woojin off, who was currently refusing to speak, before uttering a ‘hello?’

Jihoon is instantly overwhelmed by the excitement radiating off of this woman in waves, Woojin chuckles at the sound of his mother, “Jihoonie!”

“Uhhh, would you like to speak to Woojin?” Jihoon immediately kicks himself for how rude that must have sounded, but nothing else was coming to his brain.

Woojin’s mom laughs, a soft hollow sound that blossoms happiness, waving Jihoon’s assumption off, “No, no, I wanted to check in on you, silly, it’s been a while since we last talked.” 

Jihoon amiably agrees, talking about how he wishes they could speak more often, when Woojin’s mother mentions Hyunseok, “Of course we can’t, Hyunseok must be keeping you and Woojinie so busy.” Jihoon can evidently hear the smile in her voice, and has to look away from Woojin, once the topic of their supposed child is brought up again. 

They talk a little more about nothingness in general, Jihoon uncomfortably tense the entire time Woojin’s mom analyses their ‘relationship’, wishing so much that Woojin was in another room, not also listening to his mother’s words. Jihoon signs off, feigning having to complete overdue stuff for work, and Woojin’s mother reluctantly lets him go, telling him to remind Woojin to call her later.

“Your mom wants you to call her later.” Jihoon blurts out loud once the call ends, instantly facepalming, because Woojin already knows, he was listening in on the phone call and Woojin laughs, a sound similar to his mother’s, a sarcastic response leaving his lips. After pulling fun at Jihoon’s expense, Woojin shakes his head fondly, a nostalgic expression Jihoon can’t place moulding his features, “She’s still just the same.”

They’re in the middle of discussing Woojin’s mother’s antics, Woojin telling a story about how she once made Woojin and his older sister visit everyone in their neighbourhood the week they moved, in an attempt to make friends. 

Jihoon laughs as Woojin recollets his embarrassing memories, how the friends at his school never let him forget his awkward fumbling self at their front door, while his mom stood behind him with a welcoming smile on her face. Awkward and fumbling, Jihoon could never imagine Woojin that way at all, he always carries himself with such confidence and pride, naturally drawing people towards him though he didn’t talk very much. Jihoon begins telling a story about his own overzealous mother, deciding too use this time to get to know each other, when a notification flashes on his phone, and he realises the time. 

Standing up abruptly, Jihoon near yells, “We have to pick Hyunseok up!” 

They rush for the car, Woojin sending off a quick text to Joohyun’s number, making sure that they don’t need them to pick Eunbi up, Jihoon dropping the keys at least once on their way there. 

When they arrive, they spot Hyunseok waiting outside surrounded by a group of kids chatting animatedly, waving them goodbye when he spots Jihoon and Woojin inside the car. Hyunseok is talking as soon as he enters the car, barely giving them time to ask how school was, before telling them all of the things he did that day. Jihoon can’t lie and say he didn’t already miss the constant talking that filled the otherwise awkward silences. Hyunseok soon tires himself out however, growing silent and staring out of the window once again. 

Jihoon doesn’t even notice he’s fallen asleep until Woojin nudges his thigh, pointing to the back, and sure enough, Hyunseok is sound asleep, his hair falling into his eyes as his neck is bent at an odd angle. Woojin seems to read his mind and reaches backwards to adjust Hyunseok’s sleeping position so he doesn’t wake up with a painful crick in his neck later.

Hyunseok is still peacefully sleeping when they return home, and Jihoon and Woojin stand outside his car door, debating on whether to let the poor boy continue sleeping, or to just wake him up.

“He’s asleep.” Jihoon can fucking see that, he doesn’t need Woojin to tell him.

He panics nonetheless, “What do we do?”

Woojin pauses for a moment, thinking about their options, though this shouldn’t be such a big deal, “We should carry him into the house.”

Jihoon considers that, but then realises that Hyunseok can’t stay in his uniform, and will need to change out of it, so there’s no point in carrying him, just to wake him up inside the house, “Shit, but he still needs to change.”

“Stop fucking swearing, he’s just a kid.” Woojin says, and Jihoon squints at his words, watching him register his own irony with a half smile. Jihoon still understands where Woojin is coming from, though his methods of delivery are flawed, and apologises, “Shit, sorry man.”

Jihoon covers his mouth with his hand, that’s not how it was meant to come out. They both break out into laughter. They end up opting to gently wake Hyunseok up, telling him that they’re home as he comes to.

-

About half an hour later, Hyunseok is freshly washed and clothed, playing with his toys in his room. For some reason Jihoon can’t place, he feels extremely uneasy about Hyunseok playing in his room with the door shut so far away, deciding to tell him to leave the door open where he can see him.

Hastily, Jihoon begins getting started on their final meal of the day, along with Woojin. Thankfully, they both seem to know their way around a kitchen, avoiding mistakes and clashes, even though they weren’t making anything too special and were finished in a short matter of time.

Sitting around a dinner table is something Jihoon hasn’t done in a very long time. In uni, dinner became whatever he could find in their fridge accompanied by a glass of water, eaten quickly so he could make it to whatever he had to do afterwards, so it’s refreshing to be able to leisurely eat good food in peace.

He can tell Woojin also feels the same way, if the blissful look on his face is anything to go off of. Hyunseok, however, seemed to be picking at his food, the iridescent pink of his plate barely visible through the piles of food. His bottom lip was trembling, and his face was that of dejection.

Jihoon notices this and says, “What’s bothering you, buddy?”

Hyunseok’s pout deepens and he looks on the verge of tears, and it pulls on Jihoon’s heart, he flits between Jihoon and Woojin’s faces, sighing painfully, “Why aren’t you guys being _appa and dad?_ You haven’t talked at all during dinner and you were arguing this morning.”

A single tear brims past Hyunseok’s glistening eyes, and cascades down his cheek. Both Woojin and Jihoon’s hearts tear at Hyunseok’s words and they both try to comfort him, telling him that nothing was wrong, though they were lying through their teeth. After dinner and sending Hyunseok to bed, Jihoon pulls Woojin aside, speaking quickly but firmly, “We have to act like a couple.” 

Woojin’s expression change into shock would have been comical, had their situation not been so _weird_, “What?”

“I’m not giving my kid parent problems at this age, Woojin.” He says sternly, his gaze steely as he refuses to look away from Woojin, and well, Woojin can’t really argue with that.

-

The next morning runs much smoother, Woojin setting an alarm for both of them, and Hyunseok doesn’t take much bribing to brush his teeth now. Today was different though. They had _work_ and Jihoon couldn’t shake the endless butterflies quaking in his stomach, as he wore his white button up and black slacks, then placing his white lab coat, along with his lanyard, into his bag. 

He doesn’t even know if he needs anything else, or what he’s going to do when he gets there, or if he’ll even have a clue about what’s going on despite his two and a half years training in uni. 

Jihoon was positively shitting himself and it’s not fair that Woojin seems unbothered by this whole situation, from having a kid, to having to go work in a place he’s never even been before. It’s not fair that Woojin’s hair tames in point five seconds, or how he can instantly calm Hyunseok down. It’s not fair how Woojin hasn’t had a mention breakdown yet, when Jihoon is nearing his third in twenty four hours.

They leave extra early this morning, so Jihoon has time to drop everyone off, before he sets off for work himself. Hyunseok is in a better mood this morning, sated by witnessing his parents hug once (a very forced hug, mind you), oblivious to the stiffness of it. He’s mindlessly talking, when Jihoon and Woojin catch on to a offhandedly statement he makes, _I’m so excited auntie Chaeyoung is coming today!_

Chaeyoung, Woojin’s older sister, Jihoon knows that much. Jihoon begins to stress about having a guest over, before seeing a window of opportunity within that. He waits until they reach school, Jihoon and Woojin both robotically kissing Hyunseok goodbye, to discuss it. 

“Your sister’s coming over today.” Jihoon cringes to himself, way to state the obvious, “Why don’t we call her, see if she can help us in any way?” 

Woojin seriously considers this, before shrugging and making a noncommittal sound, “Why not? If she thinks we’re crazy, it’s no big deal, she’ll either play along or piss herself laughing.”

Woojin turns out to be extremely right, she ends up doing both when the pair call her and connect it to the car’s speakers. When Woojin greets his sister and tells her everything’s that’s happened, she’s silent for a good fifteen seconds, before she bursts into laughter, the sound filling the whole car. Woojin immediately begins to whine and claim that what he’s saying is the cold truth, and is shocked when she acknowledges that fact. 

“I just- I don’t know why, but for some reason, I believe you guys. Are you gonna tell Eunsang as well?”

They had forgotten about Woojin’s younger brother, who would be about twenty six years old in this timeline, and Jihoon can physically see Woojin try wrap his head around that fact when Jihoon whispers that to him. Eunsang was only sixteen the last time Jihoon had heard, and though he’d never met the younger, it’s still quite a concept to grasp. 

Before the pair can begin to answer the question, Chaeyoung is continuing, hints of faded laughter present in her tone, “I won’t come today, I’ll just let you guys settle in, but you’ve got my number if you have any questions that need answering.” They’re about to end the call, when Chaeyoung’s voice pierces the air once again, “Oh, and Jihoon, be careful of that pervert at work.”

With that, Chaeyoung ends the call, not giving either of them a chance to ask any remaining questions, or find out who the pervert is, and why Jihoon has to be careful of him. Both of them are pushed closer to the edge, and Jihoon sits straighter in his chair, an array of goosebumps lining the back of his neck. 

The atmosphere slowly softens as they watch the trees grow smaller as they drive past, and view the cold blue sky that surrounds them in the early morning light. There aren’t many people on the streets, but the roads are packed tight with cars, and Jihoon drums his fingers anxiously on the wheel as he contemplates about what the fuck he’s going to do once he reaches his workplace. 

Everything just feels so foreign to Jihoon. He’s suddenly in a sleek black car with Woojin, on the way to a job he was completely unaware of until today after dropping his six year old child off at school. The only thing that feels mildly familiar is the waking up at the ass crack of dawn, quite honestly.

They reach Woojin’s dance academy soon after, and it is nothing short of grand. Jihoon almost chuckles when he catches Woojin’s expression, one of immense pride but simultaneously tinged with fear. Jihoon doesn’t blame him though, the looming buildings were painted an opaque black, boards of color scattered across them. The glass windows were tinted black to match, and Jihoon physically feels Woojin’s fear as they look up at the intimidating building before them.

“Good luck, I guess.” 

Woojin turns and shoots Jihoon a nervous, uncertain smile in response as he exits the car, turning back towards Jihoon periodically until finally reaching the large sliding doors. Jihoon waves at him, but it goes unseen, as Woojin’s already made his way through the door.

The glum silence proves to worsen Jihoon’s nerves, as he makes his way to work, alone. The supposed fifteen minute drive seems hours longer, dread coursing rapidly through Jihoon’s body like poison. The seat suddenly feels uncomfortable under him, like a cheap woollen sweater scratching against his skin, and the car feels much to cold, despite the radiator being turned to the fullest. 

The butterflies in his stomach reach their worst as Jihoon searches for a parking space outside his lab, and he absolutely does not spend a full five minutes contemplating life with his head perched miserably on the wheel.

He attempts to not look like he doesn’t know what the fuck he’s doing when he walks into the lab, greeting the receptionist with a kind smile, and nodding at a few people also dressed in the same lab coats he’s found himself in. Following everybody else leads him to a room full of lockers, where he knows to leave his bag and phone, texting Woojin that he’s arrived at work, though he’s not really sure why he texted in the first place. 

Jihoon inwardly curses when he’s called over by two guys he doesn’t recognise, one who is much too loud for Jihoon’s liking, if his piercing laugh was sign enough, also in a white coats, lanyards reading _Kim Jaehwan_ and _Hwang Minhyun_.

Once they put their things away, and Jihoon bullshits even more on questions regarding Hyunseok, Jihoon walks with the pair, who he guesses are his friends, to an elevator. Minhyun reaches out to press a button, and Jihoon does nothing, unaware of where he’s supposed to be.

Jaehwan looks at him with a confused expression plastered onto his face, “Aren’t you going to press your button? Last time I checked, you didn’t work in virology with us.”

Jihoon panics, afraid to be made a fool out of by his colleagues, before he spots a floor guide placed conveniently next to the column of buttons, the universe must be on his side today, Jihoon thinks, as he scans for the _toxicology and fluid testing_ floor, remembering seeing fluid testing somewhere whilst he was searching the house. He quickly presses it, before retreating back to his corner of the elevator.

“Are you alright, Jihoon?” Minhyun looks him up and down, concern lacing his strong, yet wonderfully soft features, “Your smartass would have said something to piss Jaehwan off by now.” 

Jihoon attempts at a small smile, despite feeling horribly out of place, “Yeah, the past couple of days have just been a little stressful.”

“I can imagine.” Jaehwan says louder than necessary, also looking at Jihoon with concern flashing behind his eyes, “I still can’t believe they aren’t taking your reports seriously and firing Wonhyun.” 

Jaehwan shakes his head as the speaks, reaching out to lay a supportive hand on Jihoon’s shoulder. He’s confused for a moment, before coming to the realisation that Wonhyun must be the pervert Chaeyoung had spoken about so venomously before. The elevator pings as they reach Jihoon’s floor, steping out hesitantly as Minhyun tells him to be careful before the doors shut and Jihoon is left on him own. 

He follows the signs taking him in the direction of fluid testing and prays to god that the pervert that Jihoon keeps hearing about has nothing to do with his line of work. He does not have the patience today.

He walks into lab number five, assuming that’s where he’s meant to work, greeting all of his supposed coworkers. Instantly, his ears are filled with the sound of whirring machinery and vacuums, a sound Jihoon’s grown used to after countless hours of job placement, and for the first time, as he walks up to a computer to log his name and check on any past experiments, Jihoon doesn’t feel completely lost.

After a couple slip ups because Jihoon’s not yet accustomed to the real world of work, and being advised to take a break to get his head back in the game by a creepy coworker who’s eyes Jihoon has felt on him for quite some time, Jihoon finally gets into the hang of things, already knowing the basics but stuffing up when things got a little too technical. Of course it’s just Jihoon’s luck that he gets stationed right next to the creep who’s name as he comes to learn, is Wonhyun. Needless to say, after hearing so many warnings about this one specific man, Jihoon is instantly on guard.

Wonhyun has been throwing off handed comments that make Jihoon’s skin crawl consistently for the past hour, about how pretty he is, how he’d make Jihoon look even prettier and Jihoon feels like throwing up. The fact that the creep is absolutely shameless and continues to say these things as if Jihoon’s protests mean nothing to him and though eyes are now being turned his way, makes Jihoon feel positively mortified, and the fact that these people seem used to this type of interaction makes him feel even more embarrassed. 

What more could Jihoon do, he’d told him to back off countless times, and they were in a work environment, there wasn’t much else to be done.

“Wonhyun, we all know Jihoon is married, has a child and wants nothing to do with you, so the question we all want the answer to is why you would keep bothering him?” A man with reddish brown hair speaks up from his paperwork, exasperation evident in his tone as he calls Wonhyun out by name. Wonhyun immediately retreats as if he’s been burnt, and Jihoon can finally breathe, the pervert glowering at the man as he mutters something along the lines of _stay out of it, Kihyun_ under his breath.

On his lunch break, Jihoon relays the entire story to a furious Jaehwan, who looks as if he’s seconds from explosion, held back by Minhyun whispering for him to not cause a scene when one wasn’t necessary. They manage to make it through lunch without Jaehwan aggressively cursing at inanimate objects more than five times, before their forty minutes are up and they have to return to the gruelling work of testing random people’s body fluids for possible diseases they might have.

Work is pretty smooth after their ordeal, and Jihoon wraps things up on a good note, more or less, and begins the drive to Woojin’s dance school, to pick him up. Jihoon’s waiting for Woojin to leave the school when he receives a text from a contact named Kihyun. 

**Kihyun**  
_Sorry about earlier, I didn’t mean to draw so much attention but I just really can’t stand the way Wonhyun talks to you_

It fills Jihoon’s heart with warmth that Kihyun would follow up with Jihoon, and even feel the need to apologise when all he’s been is an angel.

**Jihoon**  
_It’s absolutely fine, I really appreciated you stepping in today_

**Kihyun**  
_Anytime, it was only right_  
**Kihyun**  
_Also, I know this isn’t my place, but I really think you should tell Woojin the full story of what’s been happening, you know he cares about you so much._

Ah, so Jihoon hasn’t been completely honest with Woojin about what’s been going on at work. To be honest, it sounds right about Jihoon, hiding something like this regardless of how bad it gets. 

He’s never been a fan of burdening others with his problems, since a young age, and was always reprimanded about bottling things up. Jihoon just doesn’t see the point in spreading negativity into his surroundings and the hearts of people he cared about, when he could simply deal with it himself.

This, however, is something Jihoon knows he can’t deal with himself. The least he’d need is support from his significant other. From what he’s gathered from Jaehwan’s passionate rants, he’s definitely reported Wonhyun a few times, a course of action Jihoon approves, but why would he keep this from Woojin? Surely, Jihoon should trust his husband enough to be able to tell him he’s being _harassed_ at work. Unfortunately, Jihoon has no more time to ponder on this pressing issue, as upon looking up from his phone, he finds Woojin striding towards the car, eyes glued to him phone as he clutches his coffee in one hand.

Woojin sends him a smile of recognition once he spots Jihoon in the car, but surprisingly doesn’t climb into the passenger seat like Jihoon expects him to, instead walking around to Jihoon, prompting him to open the door.

“You look beat.” Jihoon thanks Woojin for stating the obvious, quirking an eyebrow, “Want me to drive?”

Jihoon doesn’t even bother to question if Woojin can even drive, hauling himself out of the drivers seat as Woojin takes his place, deciding that getting into a car accident wouldn’t be that bad anyways. Hyunseok is at school anyways, so he’d be spared from their fate. Jihoon settles in his seat, not having to watch the road intently as Woojin drives, closing his eyes gently. 

Jihoon then sits up with a start, torn away from his moment of relaxation, realising that _yes,_ Hyunseok still was at school, but it was long overdue the end of school, how could they have possibly forgotten that work would run way past home time? “_Woojin._ We have to pick Hyunseok up from school! It’s already four o’clock.”

Woojin jumps at Jihoon’s suddenness, looking at Jihoon from the corner of his eye, a smile tugging on his lips whilst a chuckle hints his tone as he speaks, “I forgot to to call you earlier, but Hoseok texted saying they picked Hyunseok up. Apparently, they do that on days we both have work.”

Jihoon sighs gratefully, sinking back into his chair like it was made from feathers, closing his eyes once again to catch a moments rest before having to deal with an eager, needy child. They converse a little on the way to Joohyun’s place, telling stories about their first day of work, Jihoon laughing slightly while Woojin grimaces. Hes relaying a story about how he didn’t know the choreography the class had been working on, and Jihoon swears Woojin almost cries when he recounts how the students had to teach him the choreography.

“I don’t see how this is such a big deal.” Jihoon scoffs, “I mean, you got the choreo in the end.”

Woojin pauses for a moment, and the expression on his face makes Jihoon wonder if he’s really in suitable condition to be driving right now, “What do you mean you don’t see how this is a big deal?” Woojin glances away from the road to look at Jihoon scandalised, “The students had to teach the teacher the movement. I looked like a fool.”

Woojin cringes at himself visibly, lowering his head slightly, in shame. Jihoon watches Woojin become more serious, however, and his face slowly morph into disgust, as he tells Woojin that he finally met the pervert that’s been mentioned. Woojin’s features are twisted in a blend of concern and disgust as Jihoon talks about how many times he had to dodge an inappropriately positioned hand, or an even more unprofessional comment.

“Did you try telling him you were married?”

“I tried, hell, even my coworkers tried, but he was so persistent.” Jihoon leaves out the part about how how future Jihoon seemed to have not been so transparent with future Woojin, doing his honest work now. The topic is soon dropped once they reach Hoseok’s residence, both of them leaving the comfort of their car to collect the child. 

Upon opening the door, Jihoon is met with a casually dressed Irene, hair pulled up loosely into a bun, while she wore simple sweatpants and a patterned hoodie. The same glasses from yesterday are perched atop her nose, and Jihoon resists the urge to ask her where she got her bear slippers from, an unmistakeable face popping up in his mind at the sight. From somewhere within the lavish apartment, Jihoon hears a voice that sounds suspiciously like Hoseok greet them loudly, and Joohyun waves him off, explaining that he’s in the shower.

Joohyun proceeds to call Hyunseok to the door, who seems reluctant to leave, telling him that _dad and appa_ were here to pick him up, and the names still sound foreign to Jihoon’s ears, like different people. Hyunseok appears from behind Joohyun, pouting slightly, “But auntie Joohyun, me and Eunbi were playing a game.”

Sweetly, Joohyun caresses Hyunseok’s shoulder, telling him that it was close to Eunbi’s nap time anyway. All of this is so strange to Jihoon, a sense of sickening domesticity that he was so unfamiliar with. 

From Hoseok yelling greetings at them with the shower running in the background, to the fond look on Joohyun’s face as she explained his absence. From Hyunseok calling Joohyun “auntie” to Woojin and Jihoon suddenly becoming appa and dad. Neither Jihoon or Woojin were not built for this life. 

Jihoon liked to dye his hair every other color on the rainbow at least once a week, and Jihoon knew Woojin loved the nightlife, the coming home at three am, the drinking until the world swirled pretty shapes, more than he let on. Jihoon liked freedom, not being tied down to a fucking family and responsibilities, but even so, Jihoon finds himself hating this new life a lot less than he’d like to admit, and the lack of complaints from Woojin (barring his heart wrenching melodrama about work) prove the same on his side.

Just before they’re about to say their goodbyes, Joohyun squints at the pair, “You two have sure been travelling together a lot recently. Normally, just one of you would come to pick Hyunseokie up.”

Really? Jihoon wouldn’t know, and he has half the mind to say this, but thinks better of it, lying through his teeth instead, “Yeah, we just wanted to give the train lines a bit of a break, use the car instead.”

Irene shrugs and seems to take this, giving Hyunseok a small tight hug, telling him not to cause too much trouble, before waving at the pair.

-

Days pass in the same manner, an almost routine settling into their new life, and having to think for another person nearly becomes a constant in their lives, a normal reality. They get used to setting early alarms in the morning, getting themselves ready for work before waking Hyunseok up to do the same. They find that this order works a lot better for them, and avoids clashes and general lateness. 

Jihoon becomes accustomed to not waking up alone anymore, but realistically, that wasn’t too hard, seeing as they lie a minimum of five feet away from each other at all times, so he might as well be sleeping alone, (and also because Jihoon would definitely not mind waking up to a face like that everyday, but you didn’t hear that from him.)

They also become more familiar with Hyunseok always being in their presence, understanding what he likes to eat and what he doesn’t, when he needs to nap or have a drink of water. They also learn how to react to Hyunseok’s unending stories with dramatised interest if they don’t want a sulky child on their case.

One thing Jihoon doesn’t think he’ll ever get used to however, is being able to sleep functional human hours, and not have to pull draining all nighters. Sleep was becoming a distant memory in Jihoon’s eyes, back in university.

Jihoon hears Woojin return home with Hyunseok in tow, after picking him up from school after work on Jihoon’s off day. Woojin seems to be entertaining an idea Hyunseok has, the boy talking endlessly about whatever the pair were discussing. Woojin hangs his keys and Hyunseok’s coat up, walking into the living room where he finds Jihoon lounging around on the couch, occupied with his phone. 

Jihoon strives to meet Woojin’s gaze, sending him a questioning look when he succeeds. Fleetingly, Woojin checks behind him, where Hyunseok stands, still chattering away, mouthing the words _apparently it’s movie night_ in Jihoon’s direction.

Jihoon presses his lips together to hide a smile, that would mirror Woojin’s, he’s always loved a good movie, and he’s needed something to entertain him all day today. With Woojin and Hyunseok both being gone, the house seemed much bigger than before, a boring silence stretching out over hours and hours. Though it could be awkward for Woojin and Jihoon when Hyunseok wasn’t home, it was better than this stagnant tranquility. Even all of the new tv shows Jihoon has found himself occupied with only provide entertainment for so long, so he almost giggles aloud at the prospect of watching a movie with other people. 

He ignores the passing thought that Woojin has a lovely smile, and should show it more often, because it’s normal to notice these things about other people. Jihoon follows Hyunseok upstairs to get him out of his uniform while he asks about his day. Jihoon has started preparing himself for an influx of new information every time he asks this question, Hyunseok never running out of new events to inform them about. 

Today, Hyunseok tells him about how the teacher had asked them all what they would like to be in the future, and how he felt really frustrated when everyone else knew except him. Sadness gleams in his eyes, and Jihoon comforts him as he folds the tiny uniform, “Hey, don’t be upset, Hyunseok. I didn’t know what I wanted to be either when I was your age.” 

Hyunseok seems to lighten up at this, saying with resound determination that he was going to find out what he wanted to be soon. The pair both look up when they hear another voice coming from the doorway, 

“Bear,” Woojin is leaning on the doorframe, and Jihoon acts like he doesn’t feel his heart tug at the nickname, “I’ve got a secret to tell you.” 

Beckoning him with his hand, Woojin prompts Hyunseok to come closer, the young boy bounding up to Woojin excitedly, ignoring Jihoon’s protests that “He hasn’t finished changing yet!” 

Woojin squats in order to be on Hyunseok’s level, cupping a hand over his ear, before whispering, much too loud to be considered a whisper, as Jihoon could hear from across the room, “When I was younger, I wanted to be a piece of cheese.”

That sends Hyunseok squealing across the floor, a leg in one of the pant legs, the other flapping about as Hyunseok bursts in to bouts of uncontrollable laughter at Woojin’s ridiculous statement. Jihoon shakes his head in wonder as the laughs of both Woojin and Hyunseok fill the room, and Jihoon will never understand how Woojin manages to be so good at making kids laugh in a matter of seconds. Jihoon could never. 

The routine is pretty much the same as usual after that, Woojin preparing dinner for them all, whilst Jihoon finishes paperwork he was unable to complete at work. After a largely uneventful meal, and a twenty minute nap enjoyed by none other than Hyunseok, the ever energetic boy climbs into the lap of Woojin, asking him what movie they were going to watch today. Woojin looks at Jihoon for help coming up with an answer that would satisfy the young boy, the latter only shrugging in response, proving to be no help whatsoever. 

They end up in the master bedroom, Hyunseok perched between the two of them, invested in whatever kid friendly movie Woojin managed to pull out of his ass. Hyunseok’s mouth was strung open slightly, and he was dressed in what Jihoon has learnt as his favourite pair of pyjamas, eyes unwavering from the movie on tv. Jihoon was glad to see Hyunseok enjoy so little so much. It was refreshing to see the young twinkle in Hyunseok’s eyes whenever something remotely interesting occurred, similar to the way nobody could shut him up once he’d manage to join forces with Eunbi.

The movie finishes with an ending that leaves Hyunseok’s eyes wide, and Jihoon can’t help but feel a little disappointed that their movie night was now over. He knows it’s just a kid’s movie, and he absolutely should not be so interested in such a fickle plot, but feels less ashamed of himself when he spots Woojin mirroring Hyunseok’s facial expression and it brings a smile to his face, though he doesn’t really know why.

-

They’re nearing the end of their second week in their new lives when Hyunseok is invited to a sleepover and Jihoon (along with Woojin this time) promptly loses his shit. Coincidentally, It’s also nearing the end of their second week when Jihoon realises that he just might not mind this new life. 

He doesn’t mind Woojin’s unexpected soft embrace when they’d waved Hyunseok off at his best friend’s house, a small boy with a head of brown hair who had the uncanny similarity of Hyunseok’s childlike mischief. Jihoon doesn’t necessarily mind Woojin reassuring him that Hyunseok would be absolutely fine, and that they could check on him if they ever needed to.

Still, Jihoon can’t help but think the worst, and not even Woojin can blame him, when you hear about what goes on in the news and he apprehensively voices his concerns to Woojin. He doesn’t even know why he’s so stressed over a simple sleepover, or why he’s suddenly felt so committed to ensuring this young boy receives nothing but fortune. 

Woojin murmurs an “I told you so” into Jihoon’s hair when they pick him up the very next day, fresh and changed into new clothes, accompanied by his best friend. As his mother is talking to them about how well behaved and happy Hyunseok is, Jihoon realises that he had absolutely nothing to worry about (the swell of pride that fills his heart is just a bonus). Catching Woojin and Hyunseok perched comfortably on the bed through a crack in the door later that same evening so happens to be another bonus. 

Protectively, Woojin has Hyunseok tucked underneath his arm and into his chest, and a children’s book decorated in pinks and blues, shimmers and shines, placed across both of their torsos. Woojin has a hand running through the child’s soft locks as they both take turns to read the storybook and Jihoon overlooks the way his heart seems to pick up by a few heartbeats at the sight, opting for spontaneously querying Woojin about the placement of the remote, instead of joining them, as he walks away (albeit reluctantly, but Jihoon won’t ever say that aloud).

-

Jihoon wakes up alone one drizzly Saturday, in the comfort of their shared room, and he refuses to puzzle himself by wondering where on earth Woojin was, settling with the decision that he probably woke up early, and is now watching tv. 

Jihoon, however, spends the next thirty minutes tossing and turning restlessly in bed, his plan to fall back into serene sleep hopelessly abandoned as he begrudgingly gets up to alleviate himself. Upon walking into the living room, Jihoon seriously contemplates going back to the past right this minute to prevent the aneurism he feels coming, due to the sight before his eyes. 

To the right of the room, Jihoon sees Woojin exactly as he predicted sitting on the couch, eyes fixated on the tv, oblivious to his surroundings. He doesn’t even bat an eyelash as Jihoon enters the room, grumbling some sort of a greeting in his direction. Jihoon can’t take his eyes of Hyunseok, however, shock freezing him in place as he just watches his son commit an act drawn straight from any parent’s worst fears.

He’s crouched on his knees, a set of marker pens beside him, as he completes his newest drawing. _on the wall_. Jihoon swears he feels the migraine coming in no time at all, and he hears Woojin curse quietly behind him, who’s finally noticed Jihoon standing still in the center of the room, staring at the innocent child on the floor, lost in his own world. 

Jihoon doesn’t even get the chance to yell his name, as Woojin does it for him, leaping out of the chair as Hyunseok startles. Swiftly, Jihoon turns on Woojin, pointing an accusing finger directly at him, “You were in here the whole time! How could you not have seen him?”

Jihoon watches Woojin fumble around for an answer through narrowed eyes, and spots Hyunseok slink behind his dad, to hide from Jihoon’s impending fury. A fiery rant and a few shed tears later (it’s not clear if they came for Jihoon or Hyunseok), Jihoon and Woojin find themselves hauling one of the couches across the room, strategically placing it to hide the horrendous art scrabbled on the wall.

The whole time, Hyunseok had at least sported a crestfallen look on his face, head tilted towards the floor and mumbling quiet apologies, until Jihoon had finally taken pity on the poor boy and pulled him into a gracious embrace.

Afterwards, Jihoon unceremoniously collapses onto the couch beside Woojin once they finish, and for some peculiar reason, they find themselves unable to contain bouts of loud laughter, and Jihoon doesn’t know why he leans closer to Woojin as he does so.

As time passes, Hyunseok seems to take a liking to causing the pair as much trouble as he possibly can; hiding from them at bed time, falling back into the old habit of refusing to brush his teeth (a problem that Jihoon has completely handed Woojin the reigns to deal with). 

Now, Hyunseok trails behind the pair in the store, as Jihoon pushes the shopping cart down the aisles under Woojin’s directions. Occasionally, the child points out different sweets and toys that they kindly deny buying for the sake of their bank accounts, and Hyunseok’s poor teeth. 

Jihoon is absentmindedly listening to Woojin talk about a random subject that they’ve stumbled onto, when he realises with a frown that he hasn’t heard from Hyunseok in a while. He whips around to check behind him, only to find nothing, barring the other peaceful shoppers. He clutches Woojin’s arm tightly to stop him from walking, and informs him that Hyunseok is nowhere to be found. Jihoon watches Woojin’s eyes widen in realisation and his own heartbeat suddenly skips a beat, as his calls for Hyunseok go unanswered.

“Where did he go?”

“He was right here!”

“What if somebody takes him?”

“People lose their kids in stores all the time, he probably just wandered off somewhere.”

Jihoon sighs in fear and frustration, the shame of already losing his kid settling in, and the watermelons on the shelf seem to be looking at him in disdain too. They’ve scaled every single aisle, searched every single crevice with no sign of Hyunseok, the shame slowly morphing into panic with every aisle turned empty.

Jihoon can feel himself constantly fidgeting, checking his phone every twenty seconds, and Woojin is no better, until the scratchy sound of microphone feedback resounds through the store, and they instantly tune in to the muffled voice coming through the speakers.

They begin to realise with exhausted sighs, as the voice calls them to the front, that Hyunseok must have wandered off, then went to the till lost. Upon arrival, Jihoon finds Hyunseok next to a worker, his eyes cast to the ground as he spots his parents walking over. The employee shakes his head repeatedly, flustered, as Jihoon frantically bows in apology for causing them so much trouble, and Woojin grabs Hyunseok’s hand lightly, telling him to thank the employee. 

Once alone with Woojin and Hyunseok, he takes a minute to calm the nervous turning of his stomach, just listening to Woojin reprimand the child about wandering off away from their line of sight, “Hyunseok, don’t you ever walk away from us again.”

Jihoon crouches down to Hyunseok’s level, “It’s so dangerous, Bear.” He tacks on, barely aware of the nickname that mistakenly slips out. Woojin, standing, places a hand on Jihoon’s shoulder, prompting him to instinctively pull the child closer into an embrace, still muttering into his tufts of brown hair.

After their little incident, life goes smoothly for the most part, irrelevant blips surfacing along the way (like an email detailing bills and transactions dealing with hefty amounts of money coming through, and Jihoon and Woojin simultaneously realising that they have no idea how to adult) or the major awkwardness they experienced when hyunseok came home from school one night complaining about how all the other kids have brothers and sisters, so why doesn’t he.

(“My teacher told me that adults do special things to have kids but that it might be a bit different for you guys. Can you try the special things anyways?” Jihoon nearly fainted that day, hearing those words exit Hyunseok’s mouth.)

However, most issues find themselves simply being resolved by a phone call in Chaeyoung’s direction, who taught them how to actually pay their bills, and it’s after those calls that Jihoon knows that they’ll be okay. He doesn’t mind this life anymore.

He maintains that view for a short while, getting used to the domesticity of his new life, the collaboration-heavy tone tinting everything, from washing the dishes, to getting Hyunseok ready for school.

His optimism is short lived however, when Jihoon enters the work building one morning and instantly requests Jaehwan’s silence, who has already started talking much louder than necessary, then greets Minhyun gently. Jihoon has managed to avoid working near Wonhyun for the most part, but today decided to be the day fate has stationed them in close proximity.

It’s coming to the fourth time that Wonhyun has attempted to inconspicuously touch Jihoon in an inappropriate fashion, and he’s found himself very exasperated with the situation, very quickly.

Jihoon swears he doesn’t even control it, when he bursts out that he’s married and has a fucking family, attracting a few eyes in their direction, and is blown away when Wonhyun doesn’t even back off then. This time, Jihoon notes, there’s no Kihyun to save him, or any other Good Samaritan to spot his struggling and help out, left to endure the creep’s suggestive comments alone.

“You look too young and beautiful to already be tied down in a marriage, don’t you think?” Though this is almost exactly what Jihoon was thinking a few weeks back, it sounds horrible coming from this guy’s mouth, leaving shivers wracking all over his body at the thought of what his words imply.

Jihoon’s head instantly snaps toward the man, abandoning his work, blood boiling at his next snarky comment concerning Woojin, _I bet your husband doesn’t do anything for you anyways_, and Jihoon knows that he meant this sexually, which was enough to make him feel in disgust, but he can’t help himself from reading into the double meaning under it, and his temper rises, and he doesn’t even understand why.

He then abruptly excuses himself whilst removing his gloves and mask, striding firmly to the bathroom, eyes following him until the very moment the door closes behind him. Quickly, he thanks every god he can think of that the area is empty, as he pulls his phone out and scrolls to Woojin’s contact. He hesitates slightly, though he knows today was Woojin’s day off, and he probably wasn’t doing anything of importance right now, the frustration eventually winning as he clicks on the FaceTime button.

The phone only rings twice before Woojin picks up, his face coming into view. He sees that Woojin sitting with Hyunseok on the living room floor, an array of colour pencils scattered around them as they work on yet another art piece. Woojin’s sleeves are rolled up, hair pushed back and he asks Jihoon what’s wrong.

It’s then when Jihoon suddenly realises why he was just so mad at what Wonhyun was implying about Woojin, completely airing his question. How could one say that about a person a selfless as Woojin, who was currently in the most backbreaking position on the floor, just to show attention and interest in whatever Hyunseok was drawing below the camera. Woojin, who has tried to do the best for Hyunseok since the very beginning when all Jihoon would do was complain. Woojin who makes them all separate lunches for the day, out of the pure goodness in his heart.

“It’s Wonhyun, again.”

The camera angle shakes a little, view unsteady as Woojin stands up, phone in hand. “Bear, I’ll be right back, okay?”, he tells Hyunseok, patting his head when the child looks up sadly, reassuring him that he’ll be back in no time. Woojin then shuts the door gently behind him, smile wavering off of his face.

Woojin rubs a hand over his face, visibly agitated, eyes darting around the room before sighing, voice gruff, “Tell him you’re with me.” 

Jihoon’s heart jumps at that statement, nervous butterflies immediately shooting into his stomach for reasons he doesn’t quite understand, the possessiveness in Woojin’s tone doing things to Jihoon’s insides.

“I already did, he doesn’t care.” Jihoon says exasperated. The conversation lasts a few more exchanges, Woojin telling him to tell his manager, and angrily asking why no one would help Jihoon, and telling him that he felt it wasn’t safe for Jihoon to work in an environment like that (Jihoon totally doesn’t melt at the care Woojin is showing). Things Jihoon has heard countless times from different people. 

He settles it with the resolve to tell his manager yet again, careful not to get his hopes high. His manager ends up doing the best she says she can, moving Wonhyun to a completely separate unit away from Jihoon, which keeps him sated for the time being, because breathing room is something Jihoon never thought he’d have to miss. 

-

They find themselves overwhelmed with guests two weeks later, the idea brought forth by none other than Bae Joohyun, insisting that Jihoon invite his friends over to wind down, since he’d apparently been talking about doing so for a very long time, offering to take care of Hyunseok for the evening. Joohyun would not take no for an answer, even recruiting the help of the rest of her family, bringing both Eunbi and Hoseok to attest to her claims. Jihoon, soft as ever, of course ended up giving in, landing him in his current position. 

The last pair to arrive to their house had been two women named Sana and Dahyun, two people he had never even heard of, but treated him and Woojin like close family. Their front room was full of people, all conversing deeply with each other as soft music played from their speakers.

He’d met six new people of the eight guests, since he’d already been familiar with Donghyuck and his then best friend Mark back in uni. The first he’d met were a couple consisting of a tall dark haired man named Kang Daniel, and his considerably shorter fiancée, Park Jihyo. Both seemed to be very kind souls, amiable and quick to laugh at the smallest things, and very obviously in love. 

Seungyoun and Wooseok were second to arrive to the house, and seemed to be another couple. Complete opposites, Jihoon thought, Wooseok quiet and reserved, and Seungyoun the opposite, loud and boisterous, seemingly younger than his years. They still brought ends together however, opposing personalities complimenting each other in the best ways. They loved each other, and even a man with half a brain wouldn’t be oblivious to that. 

Arriving much later came Sana and Dahyun, who seemed to be closer with Woojin and Jihoon, talking to them the most, and sharing inside jokes that neither of them understood but played along with.

They’d been socialising in the front room for just over an hour, before Woojin suddenly stands, and pulls Jihoon into the kitchen. 

“What?” Jihoon questions as he’s directed to lean against one of the counters, Woojin in front of him, hands on his waist.

“I couldn’t breathe in there.” They’re standing much closer than usual, way too close, and Jihoon is hyper aware of Woojin’s hands resting on his hips, the pressure burning through the fabric of his clothes. It’s the alcohol. He averts his eyes from Woojin’s face, counting the buttons on his shirt instead.

Jihoon hums softly in agreement, “They’re good people,” he pauses to look Woojin in the eyes, “We made good friends.” 

“We’ve made a good life for ourselves.”

Jihoon believes that too, thinking about the house they live in, the cars they drive, the school they’ve managed to send Hyunseok to and the company they’ve surrounded themselves with. Future them have really done an amazing job, and Jihoon realises this is all he’s ever wished for, a good, well paying job, and a supportive family, and he doesn’t even mind Woojin being the one he spends it with, if he truly thinks about it.

They pour glasses of water for themselves, creating a little more idle conversation before returning to the function outside. A couple hours pass, Jihoon losing himself in the company of his friends, playing the stupid games he’s used to playing at the house parties he frequents back in university. 

He finds out that Jihyo and Daniel have a one year old child, who apparently looks exactly like Daniel but with Jihyo’s smile, (“another beautiful smile I get to see everyday.” Daniel says, making everyone groan yet again with the incessant cheesiness of his comments). 

He also learns that Mark and Donghyuck are also very close with Woojin’s younger brother, Eunsang, despite the two year age gap and Jihoon laughs at Woojin getting a kick out of making fun of Eunsang with the pair. Sana tells everyone that they plan to adopt a cat, and for some weird reason, Seungyoun sees that as a perfect opportunity to helpfully inform the entire group that Wooseok is into pet play, which he indignantly denies, hitting Seungyoun many times in the arm. 

Eventually, the time for them to leave does come around, and emptiness settles as each pair leaves with the promise to do this more often, and Jihoon and Woojin find themselves wallowing over the fact that this may be the last time they see these people for a minimum of five years once they go back. 

The house gradually grows silent, as Jihyo, Daniel, Sana and Dahyun all leave together. The first thing Jihooon does is check on Hyunseok, a text to which Hoseok replies with a thumbs up emoji, texting that Hyunseok is sleeping sound right now, and that he and Joohyun were off to bed as well.

Jihoon faintly recalls wrapping his arms around Woojin before going to sleep, but then again, he was too tired and drunk to remember much of last night anyways.

On the way back home from picking Hyunseok up from Joohyun’s house in the morning, after staying for a cup of coffee, Jihoon begins to think about how much he actually cares about Hyunseok, who’s currently sitting in the backseat reading a storybook he’d taken to Eunbi’s, and deduces that it is a very scary amount, when you consider the fact that they met the kid just a couple months ago. 

He thinks about how peaceful the house is when he’s away for a play date with Eunbi, a moment of tranquility within chaos but tinged with emptiness. Jihoon always ends up missing the havoc that inevitably comes with having a six year old child running around the house.

He thinks about all the times he’s graciously lifted Hyunseok onto the kitchen counter opposite where he’s preparing food, so he can watch him cook while they keep up random conversation. He remembers the times that Woojin joins them in the kitchen, often popping a fruit into his mouth as he occasionally lays a hand on his Jihoon’s shoulder to also watch what he’s doing. 

Jihoon’s even gone as far as to stop watching his plethora of new shows from the future, just to entertain a bored, sick, or sad Hyunseok, playing games with him to keep him company. 

Jihoon finds himself also surprised at Woojin’s immense favour towards the young child, but less so than at himself. How when Woojin takes one of his many famous naps, (that both Jihoon and Woojin were known for back in uni), Hyunseok will crawl atop Woojin sometimes, a mischevious grin plastered on his face accompanied by giggles he’s probably not aware of. Woojin will good-naturedly crack one eye open slightly, an unmistakable smile painted on his face as he feigns sleep once more, before wrapping his arms around their son, rolling around until they’re both giggling messes.

Jihoon’s heart warms when he sees the visible effort Woojin puts in their kid, when he signed Hyunseok up for the junior football team and Jihoon ended up being more passionate about it than the two combined, acting like it wasn’t him who screamed his head off at every game, ignoring the soft look in Woojin’s eyes as he laughs with him. 

How when Hyunseok came home from school one afternoon, evidently upset and bottom lip quivering in a way that pulled Jihoon’s heart to pieces, all because another kid had made fun of him, Woojin wiped the child’s tears as Jihoon hugged him.

He’s surprised at how much he cares for Woojin so suddenly as well, because it’s easy to care about kids, their cute antics and endless mischief force it out of you whether you like it or not; but he’s realised that there are times when Woojin will lay an instinctive hand on his waist when they’re both occupied and the burning pressure is hard to ignore.

He remembers laying his head on the other man’s shoulder countless times during late nights of watching television, long after Hyunseok has fallen asleep. How they both fill with immense pride when the teacher calls home praising Hyunseok for his behaviour. He even finds it endearing when Woojin tells Hyunseok off for doing things he shouldn’t, but smothers him with a hug seconds before he starts crying, resolve broken. On the nights when the cold is harsher, and hands end up lacing together, though they never talk about it after.

When they wake up during serene weekends to an excitable Hyunseok pestering them for entertainment, the other types of mornings, where they’re both conscious and just tracing patterns on each other’s arms, avoiding eye contact at all costs. It’s about how he knows they’re both conflicted about returning to their old lives in just two months, how they’ll miss this domesticity that they’d never thought they’d grow to appreciate. How they never talk about it, but both know there’s something there that goes beyond deep friendship.

-

Jihoon opens his eyes to tufts of black hair staring him in face, and smiles when Woojin turns over, having heard him shuffle around upon awakening,

“Good morning,” Woojin whispers, tucking a stand of Jihoon’s hair behind his ear. Jihoon’s heart flutters wildly in his chest as he whispers the greeting back, and as usual, he refuses to acknowledge the fact that they’ve started to behave like this when nobody is even around, when there is nobody for them to put on a show for, because he’s not ready for what it means. 

He follows Woojin’s movements with his eyes, and watches as he attempts to turn over to reach for his phone, but before he can, Jihoon shoots an arm out to stop Woojin from doing just that, pinning it to his side and stopping him from turning away. Woojin jumps at the sudden movement, and Jihoon looks at his own arm in shock, like he can’t believe his own actions. 

“I- I’m sorry, I just- I don’t know why I did that.” Jihoon manages to stutter, quickly removing his hand from Woojin’s arm, as if he’d just been scalded. Jihoon’s in the process of beating himself up internally, questioning why he would behave so impulsively, why he always had to make things so awkward between them, before being interrupted by Woojin.

“Hey,” Woojin waits until Jihoon makes direct eye contact with him, “it’s okay.” He whispers softly, and Jihoon finds himself unable to resist the urge to cup Woojin’s cheek gently. This, Jihoon thinks, is abnormal; they never keep physical contact for this long, nor eye contact, but he wasn’t in the slightest bit uncomfortable, like he would be with anyone else.

It feels like he only has time to blink, before Woojin’s lips are pressed against his own in a fleeting kiss. He pulls away, unsure, and Jihoon simply grabs him by neck to pull him closer once again. 

Time flies by, in shaky breaths and built up tension, and Jihoon briefly wonders exactly how a man as perfect as Park Woojin could actually exist, how a single person could make everything feel _right_. They kiss for a long time, broken apart only by Hyunseok walking into the room. Immediately, they jump away from each other in surprise, stumbling over words to explain the incriminating position they’d been caught in by their son. 

Hyunseok sighs heavily in relief, and climbs up on the bed to sit with them, “Finally. You two haven’t kissed in so long that I thought you were broken.”

Both of them are rendered speechless, Jihoon instead ruffling his son’s hair, a blush tinging his pale skin slightly pink, whilst Woojin pulls Hyunseok in between them, as they all chuckle quietly at Hyunseok’s brashness. It’s serene with the snow falling outside and the white bed sheets imprinted with the outline of a family, and Jihoon doesn’t miss the eye contcat he shares with Woojin that’s filled with hints of love as he asks his son what he’d like to be when he’s older. 

-

Christmas comes around in no time, and it’s both a blessing and a curse. A blessing, simply because Hyunseok’s been running around like a mad man, mood boosted in the Christmas spirit, and also because Jihoon gets to see his parents and older brother who he hasn’t seen since way before they travelled to the future. However it also comes as a curse, a symbol that their time with each other and Hyunseok in their new lives is coming to a close very soon, they only have two months left. 

They’ve collectively organised Christmas to be spent at their house, on the basis that they have the biggest house and best Christmas tree, courtesy of Hyunseok. They boy had spent their entire Christmas shopping period begging for a single, extravagant tree he’d seen on an advert, relenting only when Jihoon and Woojin had come home with a specific box in hand. The child had been so excited, he’d decorated it on the very day they’d bought it.

Today is the first time Jihoon is going to see his family, and Woojin’s in person, and he’s actually excited about it. Finally grasping how to be a functioning adult allows Jihoon to now feel excitement for future events, instead of just fear and anxiety. He can’t believe his eyes when his older brother walks through the front door (ten years can really change someone, Jihoon finds out), and almost forgets to mask his shock, because showing it would raise too many questions he can’t be bothered to answer. 

When Chaeyoung comes with a little girl grasping her hand, who Hyunseok immediately runs over to, Woojin nearly faints, both of them unaware that Chaeyoung apparently has a child also. 

She offers a small smile as she gets dragged away by the two kids, in leeway of a _surprise_. Overall, Christmas turns out to be a great experience, Eunsang proving to be great entertainment for the kids, quite obviously the favorite uncle. Woojin’s mother seemed to take a strong liking towards Jihoon, often jokingly comparing Woojin to Jihoon himself, and claiming that she wishes he were her son instead, which the whole family laughs at, to Woojin’s exaggerated dismay.

Jihoon is also glad to find out that his parent’s cooking is as good as ever (not that he doubted them in the first place), and he argues with his older brother as to who gets served first, Jihoon arguing that’s its his house so he gets rights to first serve.

It’s fun, and Jihoon gets along with Woojin’s siblings much better than he thought he would, Chaeyoung taking delight in updating them with all of the embarrassing situations they’ve caught themselves in, in the past ten years. 

Eunsang, still very much a child at heart, reels in excitement when he hears that Jihoon and Woojin travelled from the past, but throws a slight tantrum when he finds out that Chaeyoung was told almost four months ago. Their parents are in the kitchen, preparing even more food, leaving the siblings in the living room, and the children in the playroom. 

Sooner than expected, the part everyone’s been waiting for arrives, as their parents join them in the living room along with the kids, to open presents. Kieun, Chaeyoung’s daughter, seems to be the calmest out of the two, Hyunseok practically bouncing up and down to open his presents, and every person in the room looks at him with fondness in their eyes. 

It’s easy, Jihoon finds, being with his family, and wouldn’t trade this life for anything. The day eventually does come to an end, everybody leaving slowly, except Chaeyoung and Kieun, who begged to stay the night so she could continue play with Hyunseok, and Jihoon doesn’t remember a Christmas this warm. 

-

The two months pass very quickly, and Jihoon remembers his mother always telling him that time passes quicker when you’re enjoying yourself. Woojin begins to not have to check Hyunseok’s closet for monsters every night, and Hyunseok finally learns how to change the tv channels all by himself, instead of calling one of his parents whenever he got bored of the program showing. Jihoon eventually stops needing to tell the child to fold his clothes neatly and to drink water at school.

Their baby was growing up right before their eyes, and they had to leave before they could properly witness it. On their final day, they don’t do anything too special, their hearts too heavy with the prospect of going back ten whole years, and having to wait that long for this life once again. 

The day couldn’t pass any quicker if Jihoon wanted it to, the morning whizzing past in a blur, and it’s already evening, their reality coming closer by the minute. They make sure to tell Hyunseok how much they love him throughout the entire day, and also make a quick trip to Joohyun and Hoseok’s, just to see them one last time.

Hoseok smiles softly as he opens the door to the small family standing outside, immediately welcoming them inside to their home. Hyunseok quickly scampers off in search of Eunbi, who Jihoon assumes he finds very quickly, judging by the level of noise resounding from the hallway. It’s that same hallway that Joohyun emerges from, with Eunbi in tow, who mumbles a quiet, “Hello, uncle Jihoon, Hello, uncle Woojin.” before running out of the room once again to reunite with Hyunseok.

Hoseok sits them down on the couch, “What brings you guys here?”

Realistically, there is no logical explanation for their sudden visit, and the only one they had would confuse Hoseok and Joohyun beyond imagination, so they settle for the one closest to the truth, “It’s just been a while, I guess, and we wanted to personally thank you for what you’ve done for us.” 

Joohyun giggles a little, slapping Woojin’s arm gently in protest, “Don’t be so ridiculous, you guys are family to us. You’d both do the same.” It takes all of the self control Jihoon can muster to hold his tears back, a familiar feeling crawling up his throat and settling just behind his eyes. 

They stay not much longer after that, for fear of letting everything loose, whirling up casual conversation before bidding their final goodbyes. 

Eventually, Hyunseok’s suspicions begin to climb at the rise in affection he’s suddenly being shown by his parents, and he voices this when they’re all lying on the couch, a movie playing even though it’s not a Saturday, “Why do you guys keep telling me you love me? Are you going somewhere?”

“We’re not going anywhere, silly. We’ll always be right here.” Woojin points to his son’s heart, tickling him slightly and making him giggle, a loud, raucous sound that brings tears to Jihoon’s eyes. The shake in Woojin’s voice went unnoticed by the young child, but echoed through Jihoon’s ears, thousands of stories told in his soft tone. 

The sadness Jihoon feels in his chest is inexplicable, a constricting feeling he can’t escape, his throat growing painful and scratchy with the urge to cry, and he doesn’t know what he’s supposed to do for the next four years to come without Hyunseok. 

Jihoon looks at his child properly, taking in the little mole on the left of his chin that mirrors Eunsang’s in that uncanny manner that his uncle never shuts up about. He looks at the birthmark that graces the skin beneath his left eye, his pin straight hair that is always unkempt. They’ve still got a few hours left together, but Jihoon already feels like a piece of him is missing. 

He knows he’s going to have to adjust to the life of no sleep and too many essays to complete again, he knows it’s going to feel unnatural not waking up to Woojin’s delicate face in his view, or to Hyunseok waking them from their slumber for trivial matters. He knows it will feel odd not having to reprimand Woojin for cursing loudly, because there will be no young ears about to listen in, and pick up on his bad habits. 

He knows he’s now much wiser, way beyond his years, and is fearful about having to assimilate with his friends and society, when he’s been living as a fully fledged adult (who pays bills, mind you) for so long.

They’re still sitting on the couch long after Hyunseok has dozed off in Jihoon’s lap, Jihoon tucked under Woojin’s arm, and random shows playing in the background.

Jihoon thinks about work, and Jaehwan’s habit of speaking much louder than necessary and drawing all attention to himself. He thinks about their house that he’s grown so used to living in every single day, and the comfort he feels returning after a long day. 

He thinks about Hoseok, Joohyun, and of course little Eunbi, and their hospitality they’ve shown even when the pair had absolutely no clue what they were doing. He thinks about the days they’ve spent at the park, or the days they’ve gone swimming, and how easy it was to bring delight to Hyunseok’s face. He’s gonna miss this.

“This is our last night, you know.” And there it is, the spell broken, Woojin finally addressing the elephant in the room. Jihoon simply buries his head even further into Woojin’s chest, stroking a hand through a sleeping Hyunseok’s hair. A silence overtakes them, no words meaningful enough to express the emotions in their hearts. 

“I’m gonna miss him so much, Woojin.” Jihoon finally whispers, barely audible, for if he speaks any louder he’s sure he’ll start to cry, “I’m gonna miss this, I’m gonna miss us.”

A tear bubbles and cascades down Woojin’s cheek, and the rawness that came with his tears was enough to floor Jihoon. In the time that Jihoon had know Woojin, he’d rarely ever seen him cry, someone who prefers to do that in his own time where the trembling of his bottom lip couldn’t be seen, where he can continue as if he never did, where there’d be no evidence of the tears that left his eyes moments ago. After all, if a tree falls and nobody hears it, did it even make a sound?

Woojin cries quietly however, visible but not audible, face wet with tears, but not a sound coming from his lips, and Jihoon doesn’t even notice, but he’s crying too. It’s as if once he does notice, it gets worse, an awaited release from all the times Jihoon’s entertained the thought of this day coming, but never allowed himself to cry.

“At least we know we’ve got a good future.”

It brings a smile to Jihoon’s face, and he suddenly begins laughing through his tears, a mess between two worlds, and he hugs Woojin tighter when he begins to laugh as well. They don’t even know why they’re laughing, but Jihoon knows that right now, he’s happy being so close to the two people he’s grown to care about most, and even though they have a timer attached to their backs, it doesn’t even matter when they’re together, right here, right now.

“Yeah, we do.”

-

They carry Hyunseok, who sleeps like the dead, into their room when they’ve exhausted themselves of cheesy soaps and stupid memories, and gently place him between them, whispering sweet nothings to him and each other. Neither of them have the heart to close their eyes, knowing that they’ll wake up tomorrow back where they started, Jihoon with his pink wavy hair, Woojin with his blonde. They’ll have tons of assignments to complete and people to keep up with - they won’t have full time jobs, they won’t have bills to pay, and they won’t have to look after anyone other than themselves. 

It’s definitely going to be difficult adjusting to who they used to be, but Jihoon looks down at their hands intertwined over Hyunseok’s tiny frame, and just smiles softly at Woojin, a million words left unsaid, before a quiet sleep takes over. 

He’s ready to do this all over again.

-

**Author's Note:**

> Some trivia for you guys:
> 
> \- 2park never end up telling Hoseok and Joohyun about their marriage in their vision for their own peace of mind, to see if they themselves really would have gotten married had they not have had a sneak peak.
> 
> \- (They are pleasantly surprised when 5 years into the future, they marry and have a lovely daughter named Eunbi)
> 
> \- (They are also surprisingly happy to see Jihoon’s creepy co-worker, just because they know it wasn’t a coincidence)
> 
> \- (They really were meant to be)
> 
> \- Hyunseok does end up with a sibling younger brother
> 
> \- Jihoon has always found Woojin hot ;)
> 
> If you got this far comment Kihyun is the real mvp


End file.
